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^-^ 


I 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  STICKEEN  RIVER. 


>KA; 


■Wi, 


'^.'^'■t 


ENTRANCE  TO  THF  STICKKKN    RJ . 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA; 


OR. 


THE  SEWARD  PURCHASE  VINDICATED. 


BY 


CHARLES  HALLOCK, 

AUTHOR  OF  THE   "FISHING  TOURIST,"   "SPORTSMAN'S 
GAZETTEER,"   "CAMP  LIFE  IN  FLORIDA,"  ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED   FROM  SKETCHES  BY 
PROF.  T,  J.  RICHARDSON. 


NEW  YORK : 
FOREST  AND  STREAM  PUBLISHING  CO., 

1886. 


Entered,  according  to' Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  t886,  by 

FOREST  AND   STREAM   PUBLISHING  CO., 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


I 


I 


PREFACE. 


•    'l^^Ji  ^^f  ^'^^  ^"""'^  ^^^^^^  yet."  says  Edwards  Roberts 
in  the  Oz,er/and  Monthly.     "  Alone  in  the  North  she  rests 

SSrance'- ""^  °'  '"  '''''   "^'^'"^  patientl/ for  her 

The  special  object  of  this  book  is  to  point  out  the  visible 

resources  of  .hat  far  off  territory,  and^o  assist  ther^! 

fnfnra.^H  1°^""^"''  '^  '"^'"^'^  '°  'hose  insufficientfy 
informed  the  economic  value  of  important  industries 
hitherto  almost  neglected,  which  are  at  once  available  for 
immediate  profit;  to  elucidate  the  vexed  problem  of  labor 
supply;  to  impress  upon  Congress  the  advantage,  as  wel 
as    the    duty,  of    providing    proper  protection    for  The 

Te&^'i^TrVu''^  representation  through  acho  en 
delegate,  who  shall  be  competent  and  conscientious  tr, 
instruct  and  advise,  and  efficient  to  push  their  SanS 

pp:ss^o?'t^-^-r?j^b^^ 


conclus" 
bargain 
those  e 
combina 
world  foi 
divert  a  po 


th^  a  o       t-— "fv....jr  ,  auu  iiimuy  CO  prove 
L  .?^'^^''^  Purchase  "  was  not  so  bad  a 
'Vt  the  same  time  attention  is  directed  to 
->nysical  phenomena  whose  marvelous 
ska  the  most  attractive  region  in  the 
nd  summer  tourists.     I  would  fain 
v,-,rr.'r.^\  Tu-  .^  ^rs.yt\   which   habitually   o-oes  to 

Europe  to  this  n-/  i.eld  of  commerce  and  advenfure  T 
would  popularize  home  "excursions  am^ag  our  voVaries  of 
fashion-Yosemite,   Alaska,  and  the  \ellov^tone     as  fh. 

Srv7orld't'"P'^'!i'"^  ^^  "^°"  before  I^^^tTn^    L 
Old  World  tour ;  and  so  make  it  incumbent  uoon  ev^rv 
American  citizen,  who  would  claim  conTderLion  abroad 
to^be^duly  accredited  at  the  home  office  as  ^omp.tent  to 


11 


PREFACE. 


fl 


When  her  mighty  forests  will  yield  their  treasures,  her  mines 
will  open  out  their  richness,  her  seas  will  give  of  their 
abundance,  and  all  her  quiet  coves  will  be  converted  into 
busy  harbors.  Her  grassy  islands,  her  rounderfoot-Sls 
and  her  bounteous  table-lands  will  pasture  goodly  herds 
and  her  exuberant  soil  teem  with  vegetables  and  fruit  The 
^t^ufu^u^  ^'■°"'  '"^^  ^^^^^'^''*  fronts-the  crystal  ice-floes 
which  fill  her  most  sequestered  channels-will  be  harvested 
where  they  float,  for  transportation  to  the  semi-torrid  atU 

hPr?H?H  r h'-  f^T'^  ^^^^''  ^'"  ^^'■^^^  the  intricacies  of 
her  studded  islands,  and  no  retreat  for  invalids  and  summer 

the  nfn''  '-'k^  '^  ""f  '^  P°P"'^^-  "^''^-^y  the  vibratiS 
the  pending  boom  begin  to  agitate  the  air.  The  favorable 
reports  of  government  explorers  sent  out  to  investigate  the 
mterioraswell  as  the  coast,  are  re-assuring.  Letters  of 
mquiry  from  intending  settlers  come  from  ?very  section 
Official  departments  are  getting  down  to  syst.^matic  work' 
New  industries  have  been  established  within  the  present 
year.  Capital  will  no  longer  be  withheld  grudg.np-lv  from 
enterprises  waiting  to  be  developed  ;  and  by  the  time  ths 
book  IS  ready  to  leave  the  press,  a  tide  of  emigration  wiU 
set  St  ongiy  in  the  direction  of  the  Aleutian  Isles. 

Talk  of  the  sterility  of  Alaska,  and  its  inhospitable  soil  ^ 
Why  there  are  eleven  kinds  of  edible  berries  which  mature 
'L^^yf^'  I  strawberries  grow  in  lavish  profusion  right 
7^V^^u^^^'^^^  the  glacier  fields  in  latitude  sifty 
degrees.  The  mightiest  giant  of  our  eastern  pineries  is 
but  a  pigmy  in  diameter  beside  the  average  conifer  of 
Alaska,  where  the  undergrowth  is  so  dense,  and  the  "  slash  " 
so  intricate,  below  the  snow-line,  that  progress  through  it  is 
almost  impossible,  and  three  miles  a  day  is  a  difficult  feat 
to  accomplish. 

Alaska  has  been  egregiously  misconceived,  maligned  and 
misrepresented.  The  very  encomiums  which  enraptured 
tourists  have  bestowed  upon  her  Alpine  scenery,  have  served 
I^'^Ta^F  settlement  or  adventure;  men  forgetting  that 
he  forbidding  Alps  do  not  constitute  the  whole  of  Switzer- 
land Frigid  impressions  of  her  climate  and  agricultural 
capabilities  have  been  reflected  from  her  glacier  fields  and 
snow^clad  peaks.  Beneath  her  dazzlin|  drapery  fancv 
apprehended  a  stark  dead  body  instead  of  a  living  force 
What  poets  admire  to  paint  as  -  The  land  of  the  midnight 
sun  matter-of-fact  folks  accept  as  the  polar  world.  And 
so  Alaska  is  misjudged. 

Alaska  has  been  belied.     Not  only  are  her  marvelous 
resources  generally  ignored,  but  they  have  been  systemati- 


PREF   .-' 


m 


cally  and  semi-officially  det  <id.  Authentic  statements  of 
disinterested  nivestigators  nave  been  sedulously  contra- 
dicted in  the  interest  of  parties  whom  it  fiaic/  to  keep  th« 
possibihties  of  the  country  close.  It  was  so  during  the 
Russian  occupation,  and  has  been  so  ever  since,  and  from 
kma red  motives.  No  conscientious  person  evt  dared 
athrm  that  the  country  was  absoluf-ly  worthless;  that  a 
region  with  2  ooomiles  of  breadth  and  25,000  miles  of  coast 
line  (!)  had  absolutely  nothing  in  it  worth  having;  but  the 
Russian  government,  which  yielded  its  prerogatives  to  the 
fur  companies,  could  itself  get  nothing  out  of  it,  aad  so 
perhaps,  it  came  to  be  for  sale.     Onlv  within  a  few  years 

?hrLti\u  ^  ^'^^'^  ""^  ''H^^  begun -to  gleam  steadfastly 
through  the  fog,  inasmuch  as  the  country  had  been  pre- 
viously inaccessible  to  ut.;  but  now,   with   a   regular  bi- 

!;j,w-  ^^^' K^"'^'  *°  P""^'P^'  ports,  and  the  omnipotent  fact 
published  broadcast  by  the  Sitka  paper,  that  milk  is  sold  at 
ten  cents  a  quart,  and  lettuce  is  ^iven  awav  in  the  local 
market,  some  caution  must  be  observed  in  pr^nauncing  the 
^rritory  valueless,  incat-Hle  and  agriculturally  worthless 
1  he  scope  and  fitness  ,.  .Jaska  for  agriculture  and  stock 
raising  are  not  yet  recognized,  simply  because  they  have  not 
been  extensively  tested. 

The  illimitable  wheat  region  of  the  British  North-west 
once  supposed  to  be  a  desert,  it  has  been  proved  can  feed 
the  world.  The  intense  cold  of  winter,  instead  of  being  a 
.  -wback,  acts  in  the  farmer's  interest.  The  deeper  the  • 
trost  goes  the  better.  As  it  thaws  out  gradually  in  the 
summer,  it  loosens  the  sub-soil  and  sends  up  the  needed 

m  Rnpert  s  Sound,  in  the  interest  of  a  railway  to  Hudson's, 
liay  claim  that  the  country  is  not  only  densely  forested  but 
contains  valleys   anj   plains  which   promise    rich    wheat 
harves..  when  once  they  shall  have  come  under  cultivation 
.Ufu'J-!"'       Alaska  seems  to  be  equally  assuring,  since 
testifv  tTr' tI '"  "^'"''t'.the^e  indigenous,  rise  up  and 
in  M  ^      I      ^u^  ^^^^^  "^^'^^  ^y  ^'0'"th  in  April  and  return 
in  November,  the  grouse  which  brood  in  May,  the  flowers 
which  bloom  in  June,  the  uncounted  herds  of 'caribou  the 
abundance  of  moose,   bears,   mountain  goats,  birds  and 
?rowth";Sf'  "'''  '''  -"berance  of  wild^fruitL  and  forest 
growth,  the  expansive  praines  and  moss-covered  plains,  and 
the  almost  tropical    heat  of   mid-summer,    all  attest  the 
presence  of  conditions,  climatic  and  otherwise,  upon  which 
to  predicate  deductions  altogether  favorable 
And  Alaska  «  is  waiting  for  deiivera-ce."     She  h^'ds  her 


■-  ,  >^, 


ri'l 


IV 


PREFACE. 


M 


arms  outstretched,  and  her  lap  filled  with  offerings,  biddine 
us  come  and  take  them  as  our  recompense,  if  we  will  but 
set  her  free  xrom  isolation  and  introduce  her  to  the  com- 
mercial  world. 

My  unpretentious  sketch  may  not  add  any  great  amount 
of  mformation  to  what  has  already  been  written  of  this 
strange  country  but  what  I  have  contributed  is  mainly  from 
my    own    personal  observation,  unaided   by   reports   and 
reference  books,  which  I  have  purposely  refrained  from  con- 
sultmg.     Its  south-western  coast  line  for  a  distance  of  one 
thousand  miles  has  become  already  pretty  well  known  and 
IS  now  being  thoroughly  surveyed  by  the  government  '  My 
illustrations  show  some  of  its  characteristics.    *It  will  take 
years  to  develop  its  visible  resources,  to  say  nothini/  of 
those  which  do  not  yet  appear  ;  and,  therefore,  we  need  not 
care  at  present  to  speculate  much  upon  what  lies  inland 
back  of  the  coast  range.     It  is  better  to  utilize  the  oppor- 
tunities at  hand  than  to  search  for  others  which  may  not 
exist.     Tht  territory  is  vast,  and  centuries  of  systematic 
investigation  will  hardly  suffice  to  reveal  its  fullest  capa- 
bilities.    Population  will  penetrate  into  the  interior  as  soon 
as  economic  industries  are  fairly  introduced  along  the  sea- 
board, and  if  there  be  any  land  fit  for  cultivation  it  will  be 
promptly  brought  into  requisition  to  supply  local  demands 
1  hose  who  know,  and  have  raised  fine  potatoes  cne  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  up  the  Stickeen  River,  which  matured  in 
August,  affirm  that  Alaska  can  supply  her  home  people  from 
the  outset,  ^xxCi  pari  passu  with  their  numerical  increase 
with  fresh  meat,  and  vegetables,  game  and  berries,  fish  and 
dairy  products,  leaving  the  lower  latitudes  to  supply  the 
cereals  and  groceries.     If  minerals  are  found  as  widely 
distributed  as  indications  suggest,  the  process  of  develop, 
ment  and    ccupation  will  be  rapid.     Upon  the  whole,  our 
people  have  shown  considerable  energy  in  taking  hold  to 
make  something  of  what  appeared  lo  be  "no  good  "     They 
have  done  fairly  well  with  their  cumbersome  acquisition 
and  events  are  likely  to  prove  that  the  "  Seward  Purchase  '' 
was  not  only  dirt  cheap,  but  a  remunerative  investment 

I  am  pleased  to  add  that  the  pages  of  this  volume  have 
been  read  by  the  specialists  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution 
and  by  the  government  officials  most  familiar  with  Alaska 
and  by  them  approved.  ' 

M7    u-  _.       T^  ^  Charles  Hallock. 

Washington,  D.  C, 

April  13,  1886. 


1 1 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I. 


Itinerary  OF  the  TRiP.-Excurv  a  routes-Interesting  overland 
S?^r  a"''°"'kT'  ^°y^g^^anadian  Pacific  an/NorEhern 
A  «'loT  ^"P^'-b  thoroughfare-The  Columbia  river  country- 
A  smoky  atmosphere-A  big  breal<fast-Superabundanc7of 
he  Pachc  coast-Glimpse  of  Mt.  Hood-Puget  SoSud-Vic! 
rh  n~  ?K'^f?  camp-Policy  towarl  the  Indian  population- 
Chmese  thnft-A  new  deal  for  John-Pigtails  no  more.    -        . 

CHAPTER   II. 

Itinerary  CoNTmuED.-At    Sea-Oxtail    soup- Enchantment 
begms-Delectable  views-Mountains  and  mS strops- A  da! 
gerous  stra.t-Fog  whistles-Kinship  of  fellowship-A  tmimnj 
school  for  bears-Indian  civilization-High-toned  HydaTs-A 

SS'^iiif 'trnM-"^":^'^"^^^  -^^'^"'^'^^  warficustomi 
witnout  duties— Holdmg  the  mirror  up  to  nature— Nautical 
diaries-Salt-water  confidences-A  hasty  burial-SwSe  of  a 
rooster-Totem  poIes-An  old  trading  post-Na  ive  scuirc- 
Magn.ficent  scenery-An  old  smuggkri-U.  S.  survevs-5:out7 
kss  salmon-A  live  town-Gold  in  sight-Natlve^Snari^ 
i^eTer^S;;i.^.eTur-"s"'fy  ""'  "  traveling  men ''-DeSr 
north,       .        -      '^;"'^,^^'"°«  canneries-The  furthest  point 


CHAPTER    III. 

As  Excursionists  See  IT.-Very  salubrious-No  mosauitoe*- 
Always  cooi-A  2,ocx>  mile  excirsion-A  new  creaXn-ArchT 
pelago  of  mountains— Snow  clad  peaks-Whales Tn  ?rnHio^  ^ 

p.uiaie— jeiiy-hsh--A  symphony  of  surf— A  stretch  nf  .-«,Jk 

CHAPTER  IV. 

'^"°!!!??'£,TuJ,7.^^„«f  «^--The  ^-^rt"  reclaimed 

winnl     A  ""*  ^°  bad-Thc  fruitful  Northwest-Chinook 

winds-Appearances  which  mislea.l-Frigid  reeC  whirh  «« 
?m"lw  l"rl'R'"l~^'''""  .cunrn.s-The   f  urLlw^tl  as  J 

-  ■      ■-■»  -'"-x.w     »>ai</  piCKiui;iii~» 


19 


36 


VI. 


COJVTENTii. 

Beet  sugar-Prices  current-A  big  timber  preserve-Three 
hundred  mi  lion  acres-Arctic  for  ests-Forest  fires-Indian 
^r":^  f^-f--^o^-)^r^-\  woods-Their  relative  value-TSe 
great  fur  land-Nat.ve  middle  men-An  unworked  region- 
Mmeral  resources-Seai  fisheries-<:ommercial  fisheries^an- 
dle  fish-Rock  cod— A  hospitable  fishing  ground-Adamic 
fishermen-  nvited  west-ofportunities  lyinf  idle-CaSan 
example-Alaska  neglected-Two  negro  men  of  nerve-PrivS; 
enterprise— I- uture  prospects,     -        -        .        .        .       rnvate 


An 


40 


CHAPTER  V. 

^^nST  yi'T-T^^^'y  settlements-Interior  trading-posts- 
Russ.an  and  English  occupation-Suggestions  for  profitable 
exploration-Government  expeditions-Newspaper  st^atements 
Z  ^ti"^  rJ"'!,"''^^?' .  misrepresentations  -  Settlement  dis! 
mTrr  tT^  •''r  ""^^  Y"^""  oumey-Interior  tribes  and  settle- 
ments—The interior  defined— Fluvial  geography-Grass  orairi. % 
and  tundras-Subsoil  irrigatio.-Herfs  of  cariL>  and  m^oSe^! 
Luxuriant  vegetation  -  Glacial  action -Gold  deposits- The 
Yukon  delta-Esquimo-lmmunities  of  the  coast   '^^        .       !    66 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Home  of  the  Siwash.-A  race  of  canoemen-Water  roi-.s- 
Canoe  patterns-War  canoes-Canoe  manufacture-Camping 
out-Chmook  jargpn-A  bloody  house-warming-Slavefy- 
Conoubinage-Creoles-Some  queer  customs-Old'timc  relics- 
Hard-woking  natives- -Heavv  cacks-Gallantry  to  women- 
Some  bad  traits-  lypical  native  houses-Dirt  and  abundance- 
lotem  poles  and  pedigrees— Indians  who  are  well  fixed-Gro- 
tesque  handiwork-Native  dyes-Hoochinoo-Gambling,         -     79 

CHAPTER   VII. 

^^?riJ.''''"^w  •7^^''''**"'*  'T*''^  beards-Ethnology  of  Pacific  coast 
tribes- Waifs  from  Asia  and  Mexico-British  Indian  policy 
commended— Solution  of  the  Indian  problem-The  Russian 
policy  and  methods-Savage  appeal  (ox  teachers--A  "wan- 
wan  or  peace  conference— Chi  I  kats  and  Chilkoots— A  "not- 
latch  and  a  truce-War  dance-Versatility  in  handicraft— 
Missitaaryefforts-Antagonisms— Female  lapses,     -        -        -    91 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


mciNE  AND  Mythouhsy. -Shaman  burial  houses-Medicine 
Hr~M'l^  f"'??  ^/"ase-A  terrible  doctor-Medicine  rat- 
tles-Methods of  turial--Cremation-Transmigration  of  sou's- 
A  ghost   with    teeth-Funeral   ccremonios-A    funeral   nile- 

r„H"l"'!l?i'"'^''"w~X^!"'''"T  "^  '^""«  hunters-Hieroglvphs 
and  mythology  Ileraldic  emblems-The  thunder-bird- 1  egend 
of  Mt.  Edgecumb-Some  Alaskan  snakes-Native  humor- 
Rehgious  zeal, 


108 


CONTENTS. 


vu. 


CHAPTER  iX. 

Alaska's  Mineral  Wealth. —The  "  stuff  "  ihere— Testimony  of 
naval  officers—Developments  retarded  from  lack  of  capital— 
Ihe  largest  stamp-mill  in  the  world— Douglas  Island— Insular 
and  mainland  deposits— Plactr  mining— Silver  Bow  basin— An 
araster.  —A  lively  mining  town— Native  miners— Gold  on 
the  Yukon-Sitka  mines— "  Lake  Mountain  Mining  Com- 
pany —History  of  mining  in  Alaska— Nick  Haley— The 
btickeen  gold  diggings— Coal  and  other  minerals— Marble 
quarries— Well-behaved  miners.         -        -        .        .         . 


-   ISO 


CHAPTER  X. 

Commercial  Fisheries.— How  f.shing-grounds  are  located-Pro. 
hfic  waters— Alaskan  enterpiise-TheChilkat  salmon  cannery- 
A  picturesque  location— Seining  and  curing  salmon-Indian 
employes— Storehouses  peroied  in  trees— A  "dog-salmon"— 
Halibut— Decrease  of  the  Atlantic  halibut  catch  — Indian 
methods  of  catching  halibut— Deep-sea  fishing— Dog-fish  oil- 
Future  possibilities-Varieties  of  Pacific  coast  fishes— Viviparous 
fishes-Rock  fish-The  black  cod  and  its  capture-Herring 
fishenes -Ranges  of  commercial  fishes-The  oolachan  or  candle 
hsh-bturgeon  and  their  capture— Other  economical  fishes  and 
marine  products— Atlantic  fishermen  on  the  Pacific 


-  130 


CHAPTER   XI. 

^'''w!;w''r°r  SHORE.-Down  by  the  sea-Anadramous  and  fresh 
water  fishes-The  sea  trout-Fishing  for  sport-Spawning 
Absence"^'''' /'''  t^'  "^^^  reveals  -  Gigantic  moUusk  !1^ 
M.wl     ?     oysters-Immense    kelps-The    incoming    tide- 

ties- Animate   flowers  and   fruits- Devil    fish- Black    bass- 

Kri'    f~'^"\/T.  ~^/^'='""fi^P'^*^««-R°"^^«  of  migration- 
Pass  shooting- Fishing  bears- Voracity  of  flies-Deer  shoot 
Ing-Mountafn  climbing-Rock  ptarmigL-AmongVhe  peak^: 
slaEg,"         r     :  ^'•y-^''^  silver  bear-Bighorn  Theep- 


153 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Glacier  Fields.— Home  of  the  iceberg-GUdal  dynamics— 
Glacier  field ,  of  Greenland-Spirile  of  th?  ice-EsquK^T 
stition-The  Muir  glacier-An  iceberg  factoSZrSe 
movement  of  glacier,-(;i.r,cier  Bay-Fafry  scc'ne^-LaS  .J 
.ceberg-Supcrnatural  colors-An  Arc.ic  landscape-SS  of 
:^^!?iT"~'^''"""'''4!f  phenomena-Artillery  in'^hc  a"-An 
HDathetlc  5pcctator-TRe  merd.glare-K  ganglion  of  glacie™- 
Moraines-GIaciarecession-Cutfit  for  glacial  e,nlo™'fn?_ 


*!>''  "/   •••uuiiii 


yiii, 


168 


Hi 


& 


^"''  COh'TENTS. 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Volcanic  cn,..,»-MilHS  XISK  ££1 IS" 
Aleutian  colonists— Cities   in  the   s,..,     <!^k„  i         ..  ^^X\^^~ 

tudes-Light  and  shade-Introspect  and  retrospect?.        '    *"; 


178 


193 


\  i 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


1 1 


Frontispiece— Stickeen  River __ 

U.  S.  Tripods  in  Channel,  ....  -g 

Klootchmans,  . 

' 35 

Stone  Totem-Pole  (Hydah),       ....  65 

Totem-Poles,     . 

•        •        •        •        •        •        .73 

Seal  Skin  Bidarka, .g 

Indian  Chiefs  (Hyas  Tyee),  ....      87 

Indian  Houses  at  Wrangell,    ....  go 

Metlah-kahtla, 

' 105 

Chiefs'  House  and  Totem-Poles— Wrangell,  113 

Indian  Grave, 

"9 

Indian  Village— Sitka, 

Black  Cod, 

139 

Hunting  Mountain  Goats,         ...  16 

MuiR  Glacier,  . 

170 

An  Excursion  Party. 

'  •  •  »  •  log 


ifirr** 


HI 


I  I 


ITINERARY. 


Twice  a  month  a  fairly  good  ocean  steamer,  with  com- 
tortable  appointments  for  excursionists  leaves  Portland  Ore- 
gon, for  Alaska,  carrying  the  mails,  freight  and  passengers, 
and  returnmg  makes  the  round  trip  in  about  thirty  days    It 
connects  at  Port  Townsend,  the  United  States  port  of  entry 
for  Puget  Sound  waters,  with  the  regular  steamer  from  Sai. 
^rancisco.     The  excursion  season  extends  from  June  to 
September  inclusive,  but  trips  are  i:>ade  the  whole  year 
round.    .The   best  route  to   Portland  tor  passengers  from 
Cahfornia  and  the   South  is  by  rail   and  stage.     The  goo 
miles  between  San  Francisco  and  Portland,  is  full  of  delieht- 
ful  experiences  all  the  way.     It  used  to  make  the  heart  ache 
irTl    K^^^'^  the  journey,  and  the  bones  ache  to  accom- 
plish it ;  but  now  almost  seven-eighths  of  the  distance  are 
done  by  steam,  and  for  the  rest,  it  is  but  a  charming  epi- 
sode on  wheels,  taking  the  tourist  through  the  most  delight- 
ful  scenery  of  the  west  coast,  that  he  may  be  the  better  pre- 
pared  to  compare  it  with  what  is  superlative  beyond      All 
the  scenic  attractions  of  the  coast  range,  of  the  San   Toa 

?iew  '1^'ST"'°  valleys,  the  Sierra  Nevadas  just  withfn 
view,  Mt.  Shasta  m  its  isolated  grandeur,  the  Siskiyou 
Mountains,  just  across  the  Oregon  line,  and  th^  Rogue  River 
and  Willamette  Valleys,  are  vouchsafed  to  us  Ikhin  the 
limit  of  three  days  How  we  bridge  the  mighty  intervals 
of^ space,  and  handicap  old  time  in  this  modern   race  of 

For  elegant  comfort,  without  sight-seeing,  the  magnificent 
Steamers  of  the   Pacific  Mail  Company,  running  f?om  San 
Francisco  to  Portland,  and  Port  Tolnsend  on  Pu^ge  S^und 
afford  an  incomparable  service.     The  boats  of  The  trans-' 
Atlantic  routes  to  Europe  are  hardly  more  luxur  ous     W 
those  dwellers  of  the  Pacific  to  whom^he  beauties  of  theTn 
land  journey  are  familiar,  generally  choose  the  water   oute 
Excursion  tickets  which  are  good  for  40  days  frorn  date  of 
jssue,  enable  the  tourist  to  accomplish  both^  the  Sside  and 
t^he  outs.de   routes.      Eastern   people    choose  tS'ii^^r^t 
racinc  or  r.orthern   Pacific  railroads,  and  Canadians'the 


flff^ 


iiii ! 
III! ! 

! 


xo 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


Ir 


Canadian  Pacific,  according  as  geographical  location  meets 
their    convenience.     Those    of  the    Southwest   find   their 
objective  point   most  accessible   by  the  Southern  Pacific 
Happy  IS  he  whose  course  leads  across  the  northern  tiers' 
where  the  phenomenal  solar  heat  of  midsummer  is  always 
tempered  by  a  vitalizing  atmosphere  which  cools  when  the 
sun  goes  down.     It  would  do  your  honest  hearts  good  to 
see  the  complaisance  with  which   our   Canadian  neighbors 
regard  their  completed  transit_a  stupendous  accomplish! 
ment  whose  engineering  difficulties  take  precedence  7com- 
fhrnn°r.f '^'  mightiest  of  our  own,  and  whose  pLsage 
through   the   rugged   gaps  of  three  successive    mountain 
ranges  makes  our  single  cut  across  the  Rockies,  seem  almost 
common-place.     Yet  the  Northern  Pacific  is  k  more  inter- 
esting route,  and  the  most  desirable  for  all  who7e  conven. 
lence  permits  a  choice.     It  traverses  a  more  JversifieS  and 
populous  country,    and   is   besides  the  great  continental 
artery  whose  pulsations  are  destined  to  klep  the  hfe  blood 
tTe^rel^f  °h'  ""^"^f  extremities.  It  will  pr^esenlv become 
the  grea   feeder  and  factor  of  our  Alaskan  commerce,  and 
the  popular  thorough^re  of  two-thirds  of  those  who  bv  and 
by,  will  regard  the  tour  as  imperative,  as  they  have  done  the 
'S:.Tl^^^:''  Europe,  now  becomin/a  fami.iar^^n'd^ 

forl'^^'^J^Y''^  pleasure  my  journey  over  this  great  thorough- 
tare  and  the  vague  anticipations  of  my  first  Alaska  tdp 
My  thoughts  were  full  of  the  unknown  land.  The  outlook 
seemed  without  a  horizon.  I  felt  more  than  ever  -  foot 
loose,  —like  a  candidate  blind-folded  for  a  first  decree  or 
a  novice  after  the  preliminary  toss  of  a  blanket-not  guess- 
ing Itl  r'th""""  H^  ??''  Y  ^""""^  ^h^t  ^"  ^^°"ld  turn 
out  right  in  the  end.     I  fared  sumptuously  in  the   dining 

and'rrietbn  ''""^  ''''''  agreeably  divided  between  reverie 

'•  Going  to  Alaska  !  Going  to  Alaska  ' " 
h.S'.*^'^r  ^°"^^^"t've  nights  I  had  lain  in  my  Pullman 
berth,  traveling  westward,  and  between  the  hours  of  som- 
nolence and  semi-wakefulness,  I  would  listen  to  the  cadence 
of  the  car  wheels  as  the  train  rumbled  on,  and  each  mono- 
tonous Iteration,  seemed  always  to  repeat,  with  a  repetition 
w.uch  made  me  tired:  "Going  to  Alaska-^./«^  to^llaska 
"-going  to  Alaska-going  to  Alaska-goini  to  Alaska  7'' 
Sometimes  it  would  drop  into  a  subdued  refrain,  and  anon 
mcrease  to  a  rattling  emphasis  when  the  train  ran  through  a 
cut,  and  this  continuous  admonition  was  broken  only  when- 
ever we  came  to  a  full  stop  and  all  the  waste  air  in  the 


M 


ITINERARY,  ,, 

brakes  blew  off  with  a  prolonged  sigh  and  a  fizz.    Of  course 
I  had  started  from  St.  Paul  with  that  intention  (to  ^^o  to 
Alaska)  and  it  was  perhaps  well  to  know  that  I  had  made 
no  mistake  in  the  passage  ;  nevertheless,  it  was  a  rest  to  all 
•      the   senses  when  daylight  came   to  relieve  the  night-watch 
and  unfold   the  wondrous  revelations  of  the  trans-continen- 
^u'P-u""'^  impotent  have  been  the  attempts  of  pen 
and  brush  to  impress  the  comprehension  with  the  reality  of 
things  seen.     In  vain  I  hold  up  m>  hands  and  cry  «  Wra- 
t>ue        No  two  days    experiences  7/ere  alike.     Each  suc- 
ceeding vie\y  and  extended  panorama,  was  altogether  dif- 
ferent  from  its  predecessor,  and  one  had  hardly  time  to  be 

^^u  f^''''  ^^^°'^  ^^  ^^^  •ost '"  "ew  admiration  of  the 
other.  There^  is  one  glory  of  the  sun,  another  of  the 
moon,  and  another  glory  of  the  stars."  Across  the  illimita- 

"  r^m'^  ^^^^  ^''1  '^^.  P'^'"^'  *h''°"g^^  the  mysterious 
'  Bad  lands  over  the  pine-clad  and  snow-capped  moun- 
tains past  the  far-reaching  sage  plains,  and  down  the  tran- 
scendent Columbia  to  the  portals  of  the  broad  Pacific— 
every  division  of  the  grand  thoroughfare  we  traversed  was 
crammed  full  of  novelty  and  absorbing  interest.  The 
decious  warmth  of  an  August  atmosphere  lay  over  all,  and 
realfzation  ^''^''^'P^''^"^  continually  gave  place  to  blissful 

The  tourist  no  sooner  strikes  the  Columbia  River  than  he 

seems  to  have  gotten  into  a  new  kingdom  of  creation.    The 

sudden  transition  from  an  interminable  sage  plain  of  more 

than  one  hundred  miles  in  breadth  to  vertical  cliffs  and  pal- 

sades  which  rise  to  fifteen  hundred  feet  sheer  out  of  the 

thl  ;;:^;'""1'JP^'^^^'^  '*^P  ^'■°'"  the  unlimited  horizontal  to 
Th.n  r  S^  perpendicular-is  of  itself  phenorienal 
Then  the  architecture  of  the  rocks  and  hills  is  different  fr.-n 
any  thing  east.  The  rivers  flow  in  mighty  volume  g?een  as 
emerald  and  plunge  into  black  rifts  fnd  chasms!c1iurning 
their  sides  wih  foam.  Shifting  sands  in  their  exposed  bed? 
blow  into  fantastic  dunes  and  bury  the  undt.brush  alona 

leao   f^om  "T  "")^  -^l""  ''^'l  '^^'  P^'-^^-     ^aterfau! 
leap   from   dizzy  heights,  emulating  the   Yosemite     The 

vegetation  is  luxuriant,  and  all  the  field  of  floTa Is  new 
Every  thing  is  gigantic.  The  common  alder  bush  grows  to 
merchantable  wood,  and  the  principal  forest  trees  imZLnt 
columns  six  feet  thick.  The  orchards  break  down  with 
redundant  fruitage,  and  whenever  there  is  a  negle^^ed  ear- 
den  patch  the  sweet  briars  and  wild  vines  overrun  th-^^fn 
closng  fences  and  bury  them  out  of  sight.  Mosses  clina  to 
the  hmbs  of  tr<=.*.c  in  o/^i;^ .„„..  __?  ,    .  '"'^""^^^  S""s  ^^ 


mrsses  and  f^sf-nnr 


O  (1  W      4-»j^Tvr%aa 


I 


la 


^' 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


w 


\' 


! 


\\ 


prostrate  trunks  ten  i.jches  deep.  All  along  the  route  from 
the  Dalles  to  Portland  are  gangs  of  Chinese,  section-hands, 
at  work  along  the  railroad  with  costumes  quaint  and  scanty, 
and  features  bland  and  child-like.  It  was  against  those  ver- 
tical walls  which  overhang  the  Columbia,  that  they  swung 
the  indomitable  heathen  from  the  heights  aloft,  to  drill  and 
blast  a  passage  for  the  railroad  out  of  the  solid  rock.  I 
know  not  how  many  dozens  lost  their  lives  in  the  dangerous 
exploit,  but  inasmuch  as  they  stood  substif  •  and  proxy  for 
supposed  better  men,  this  little  trifle  can  Uardly  enter  mto 
the  "  Chinese  Question." 

Of  course  all  tourists  rhapsodize  the  notable  points  of 
view  along  the  river— the  Dalles,  Cape  Horn,  the  Cascades, 
Pillars  of  Hercules,  Rooster  Rock  and  Multnomah  Falls, 
each  of  which,  if  isolated  and  apart,  instead  of  contiguous 
to  each  other,  would  constitute  an  attraction  which  tourists 
would  travel  f:.r  to  visit.     Not  the  least  interesting  novel- 
ties are  the  fish-wheels  along  the  shores,  both  portable  and 
stationary,  which  scoop  up  the  running  salmon  from  March 
to   August  by  the  tens  of  thousands,  looking  for  all   the 
world    like  the    obsolete  mill-wheels  of    New    England. 
Occasionally  little  groups  of  Oregon  Indians  come  in  view, 
seeming  one-third  civilized  and  two-thirds  blank.     In  vain, 
however,  we  look  for  the  spectral  outlines  of  Mount  Hope 
and   other  notable  peaks,  for  all  the  atmosphere  is  thick 
with  smoke  of  forest  fires  which  have  spread  all  over  the 
country  ;  and  for  six  weeks  past  no  one  has  drawn  a  breath 
of  pure  air,  so  that  the  inhabitants  of  this  notoriously  moist 
and  fog-ridden  region  pray  for  rain.     In  course  of  time  we 
come  to  a  comfortable  halt  at  the  romantic  little  station  of 
Bonneville,  where  a  breakfast   is  served  with   more  than 
Oriental  profusion  of  melons,  fruits  and  vegetables  in  every 
grown  variety,  and  with  milk  and  eggs,  poultry,  fish  and 
meats,  and  everything  else  toothsome  and  edible,  piled  on 
platters  three  tiers  deep  until  the  table  holds  no  more— 
and  still  the  waiters  come  with  reinforcements,  hands  full, 
and  loaded  to  the  "  gunnel."     It  seemed  to  the  parched 
and  dusty  travelers  from  the  arid  sage  plain,  just  now  left 
behind,  as  if  they  had  suddenly  struck  an  oasis  and  every 
thing  had  been  knocked  into  "  pi "  by  the  collision.     The 
markets  of  Oregon  and  California  were  emptied  out  upon 
the  board  ;  Ceres  and  Pomona  sat  helpless  with  their  laps 
full.     With  this  wide-open   welcome   the  brief  additional 
run  to  Portland  was  made  without  apprehension,  although 
the  approaching  city  could  not  be  distinguished  through 
the  murk. 


iiilt 


ITINERARY. 


«3 


There  is  a  reputable  tradition  that  when  the  atmosphere 
IS  clear,  a  view  can  be  had  from  points  of  vantage  whose 
unfoldmg  IS  like  a  revelation  of  the  celestial  realm  Afar 
seem^o  VanL' h"' ^"-.?'?  the  intense  blue  firmament 
nn  r  .u  *^  ''^".'■'>  '^"'^'  ^  trio  of  snowy  peaks  loom 
up  from  the  somber  plain  in  clear  cut  whiteness  against  th^ 
sky  like  pyramids  of  crystal,  Mt.  Hood  conspicuous  and 
majestic  above  the  rest.     Rising  in  their  purity  to  the' very 

nZr.?  n  ' v'"' "'J'^  gleaming  with  a  translucence  superb 
natural  positive  yet  most  mtangible,  they  stand  as  it  were 
the  embodiment  of  the  Eternal  Triniiy-not  me?;  reflecS 
of  this  material  world.     It   is  seldom  that  this    beatific- 
vision  comes,  even  to  patient  watchers  ;  for  fogs  and  mistl' 

them 'n'l  ^r  '"  '^^  '^1"^''  ""^^  ^'°"^^  "^  ^'""k^^  hangr. 
rafn^  H  h'  '"'.""'u''  '^-"^ '  ^"'  '^^  perchance,  September 
rains  should  purify  the  air  and  lift  the  lowering  veil  thev 
appear  momentarily  to  the  world  as  the  reflex  of  the  divine 
ransfigurat.on.  As  such,  I  beheld  as  one  privileged  The 
t.me^-favored  denize.,  of  Portland  could  n'^t  ap^reciatl  it 

I   don't   know  why  tourists  prefer  to  take  the  Alaska 

t  ::sM  ba°r  whh'?he  r  f'^  ^''^'""^'^  ^--'  -^  ^^^"^ 

tresstul  bar,  with  the  supplementary  and  outside  passage  to 

excent"th.?l'"'^  °^    '!l°°t^  'h^    ^"g^t    SouSd    rfute! 
except  that  they  can  thereby  secure  their  berths  for  the 

SVhen  th^/r  f--^'/the  subsequ  .nt  scramble  fo 
places  when  the  overland  passengers  arrive  on  board      Th*. 

constderation  is  certainly  important,  b^the  experienced 

thTofciaTof7he%r"'^  r^^'"^  b^correspon'd^Scfwith 

Jl^ertSte  writes  :  ''''"^''^  '^'"P^"^'-     ^"^  -'^°  ^^^'^  '^- 

Iimel?ener7r7the  n"'^'''  r ',  "T  °^  *^^  S^^"^  ^"^  sub- 

hm.fah  f  h  J  r      ^  PiCf '  <^^'""^bia,  where  it  breaks  its  way 

through  the  Cascade  Mountains,  but  it  has  a  DictureJn^ 

beauty  all  Its  own,  wooded  isles'  and  bold  head 'an dslhe 

tTe"ackl'unrSvX''7  ^^"^^'  with  moun?ain's' in 

f"lw    ^    ,      •     ^^^  ^^'^  ^"  occasional  picture  of  lovelv 
level  farms  lying  along  the  river  and  stretching  back  for 
miles,  but  such  glimpses  of  cultivation  were   rLrf     Settle 
ments  were    few.     At  about  four    in    the    afternoon  w. 
reached  Astoria,  which  is  fifteen  mi  es  from  the  sea     and 

oul7se7thetl'^*'^  ^°f  f  ^  ^'^h  hilUrom'which'we 
could  see  the  breakers  on  the  bar.    Astoria  is  auite  a  nr^ftv 

whe"  John  tc:,"i:T::,'.^;;z'!!  i  .m^™J"  .  ".-.<'  - 


li'iT'' 


ii 


H 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


% 


.T,!'?h^.^h^f^''^°■^*^"'  ^''^"'  •"  ^^^^^^^  ^°  residence,  is  back 
on  the  hills,  which  rise  steep  and  near  to  the  shore,  while 
the  business  part  is  built  on  piles  over  tide  water  " 

An  eight  hours' ride  by  rail  is  a  moderate  journey,  and 
while  the  steamer  is  buffeting  the  waves  of  the  outside  pas- 
sage, the  overland  tourist  from  Portland  to  Tacoma  is  per- 
mitted to  enjoy  the  comforts  of  the  superb  hostelry  at  the 

nenk  of  M^  x""'^'  ^""^  P^^^^ance  to  view  the  snow-crested 
peak  of  Mt.  Tacoma,  standing  out  in  its  virgin  puritv  like 
a  spirit  of  retrospection  against  ihe  deep  blue  background 
ot  sky.     On   It  there  are  glaciers  equal  in  si^e  to  those 

S  n^i/"'^"^  t^  k^!Pu-     ?'  "^^y  ^^^«   °*^^^^^e  the  humble 
houses  under  the  hill  by  the  cove,  where  the  presence  of  a 
hclf    dozen   Chinese  small    merchants  was  permitted  for 
years  to  vex  the  equanimity  of  7,000  people,  but  now  hav- 
ing been  charitably  wiped    out,   is  obnoxious    no    more. 
From  Tacoma  to  Victoria  there  is  a  six  hours'  sail  across  a 
long  reach  of  the  sound  by  the  splendid  steamer  "  Olym- 
pian,   palatial  as  any  in  the  east,  and  electric-lighted  in 
every  apartment.     On  the  route  is  Seattle,  a  goodly  brick- 
built  city  of  some  ten  thousand  souls,  already  made  histori- 
cal   by  Its  four  days   war  with  a  "  barbarian   horde  "  of 
Chinese  140  strong  ;  then  Port  Townsend,  the  lands'  end 
of  our  western   possessions  before  Alaska,  perched   high 
upon  a  perpendicular  bluff  whose  top  is  reached  by  a  hun- 

upon  S'flJ/'h  ,"""  "^lT^"t'l^  t'-^ffi^  properly  bestowed 
i?nH  *'\^/a^ below.  At  every  intermediate  hamlet  and 
landing  there  is  a  saw-m.ll,  with  the  primitive  forest  for  a 
background  and  reminder  of  its  purpose.  On  every  side 
there  are  intimations  of  the  country's  recent  settlement  and 
the  presence  of  the  wilderness.  Indian  dug-out  canoes  of 
fantastic  shapes  with  carved  prows,  steal  quietly  along  the 
shadowy  shores  or  cross  the  open  water  between  the 
embowered  islands.  Up  and  down,  with  every  sweep  of  the 
eye  this  notable  Mediterranean  stretches  its  majestic  length 

wLr.h""'^''''^-""^''  '-^^  ^™"'  ^  ^'■^^^  ^Wse.  anon  no 
TnH  .n  ?  ^u^""'  ^'^^  ""^"y  ^  P°'"t  ^"d  promontory 

and  curve  of  shore,  roadsteads  tortuous,  channels  narrow 
and  water  bluer  than  the  reflected  skies,  dotted  wUh 
islands,  indented  with  umbrageous  recesses  where  the 
unsuspicious  fish  breaks  the  quiet  surface,  and  offering  in 
every  littoral  dell  and  sweep  of  forest  such  delfgMf  as 
sportsmen  covet  .nd  endure  long  journeys  to  enjoy  And 
yet  on  every  sid.  .re  budding  hamlets  and  thrifty  settle- 
ments with  airs  ot  comfort,  farms  and  hop-fields,  and  busy 
saw-mills,  and  great  ships  sailing  filled  with  surplus  wheat 


s  k 


ITINERARY. 


»s 


and  steamboats  plying  hither  and  yon-all  significant  of 
energetic  industry  and  a  prosperous  future.  It  is  said  that 
a  hundred  steamboats  ply  the  waters  of  the  sound 

±Jut  the  speculative  tourist,  looking  far  beyond    Alaska 

British  Columbia,  c  aims  direct  attention,  and  there  is  not  a 
surer  refuge  or  resting  place  for  the  sea-;orn  and   wayfar! 

wlile  t'h"  '*''  H^';;^-^"'^'^u  •^"^•"  ^hich   forms  i?s  haSor. 

While  the  good  ship  which  is  to  take  us  onward  waits  at 

her  acck  and  the  purs  r  and  steward  are  making  Tt  thdr 

lists,  we  have  two  days  on  shore  to  see  the  town.     Thpre    s 

a  commodious  hotel,  called  the  "  Driard,"  where  the  most 

exacting  guest  can  be  made  comfortable     It  is  quite  uTto 

he  modern  standard,  built  of  stone,  and  occu?"es  haVa 

square  ;  containing    within    its  walls  a  creditable    Opera 

House,  which  alone  cost  $50,000  to  construct.     Its  landlord 

bodvIS".^''""""^^''^^'^"^""'  ^^quainted  with  eve  y 

ho.tTr.   '  '^"^°r'"'''  t''^  ^"^^^^iort  a  companionable 

Xtg  S^to^eaT^^'  '^""^  "°  ''^^  P-J^^-^  -<^ 
This  far-western  city  is  as  substantial  as  it  is  charming 
Started  originally  as  a  fur  company's  post,  and  afterward 
menTnf  'T^'^P'^'^-f'^^  by  the  Eraser  River  mining  e? 
ment  of  1858  time  has  proved  that  oLher  than  even  ex    .u- 
eous  causes  have  contributed  to  its  prosperity  Ind  growth 
All  the  steamer  lines  of  the  Province  center  at  Vkt^r  a 
whence  they  reach  all  coast  ports  where  set  lemens  have 
,  been  made,  and  penetrate  far  into  the  interior  by  ascenS 
constants  inTo'"^^''''"  ^^^X^  >  ^nd  tra  Je  in'easef 
fndu  ?ries^?nrnd^°  T^  l^  '^'  '"^"'"''y  settlements  and 
I  arritpH  in^  ^^  ^^^'  ^^'^  ^"  ^^  half  mast  the  day 

1  arrived,  in  commemoration  of  the  Grant  obseauies  and 
my  heart  warmed  toward  the  good  people  for  their  respect 
tSZ^v""'.  S/^^t^aptain.  Travelers  say  the  town  S 
mtensely  English  in  its  composition.  If  so,  it  has  a  wan^ 
corner  for  its  neighbors,  and  the  "  Englisl  of  ""'  f^  ^^^^^ 
W.1L     A  considerable  portion  of  the  town-site  has  been  set 

d  IveV^int'Cu?  f  "  ^--".Hill  Park,"  wU^  wfnding 
ariyes,  gent.e  undulations,  conspicuous  eminences    maies 
tie  trees,  and  a  wonderful  outlook  toward  the  seas  where" 

buuVm:  h^^'r^^^  ^"'  ^''^'  ^""«  frown  in^pSo'sly' 
but  to  me  the  entire  location  seemed  Ue  a  natural  mrk' 
with  Its  numerous  bridges  and  points  of  rock  its  ni??ur' 
esque  bays  and  inlets,  its  islands  and  bits  of  beaJh  it^ 
clusters  of  trees  and  luxuriant  garr'4  ev'^rv  em 
crowned  with  a  r"-^»'"  ••••"-    --^  '  ^^^^  em:.. -nee 


jern 


V   WW  cuuuiing  a  cosy 


nil  \l 


x6 


OU/i  NEIV  ALASJCA. 


w- 


cottage,  and  all  the  well-built  business  blocks  occupying  a 
curve  of  the  land-locked  harbor,  constituting  a  picture  of 
solid  comfort  and   natural   beauty  which  grew  more  and 
more   attractive  as  it  became   familiar.     There   was   iust 
enough  shipping  to  give  the  place  an  air  of  importance- 
some  square-rigged  vessels,  some  steamers,  and  a  few  old 
hulks  which  were  well  nigh  past  service.     Here  lay  the  old 
Hudson  Bay  steamer  "  Beaver,"  which  crossed  the  ocean 
in  1832.     It  is  said  she  has  cheese  aboard  now  which  she 
brought  then.     Here  was  the  "  Otter,"  which  laid  the  sub- 
marine cable,  and  the  "  Wilson  G.  Hunt,"  once  plying  in 
New  York  waters.     Up   the  gorge,  where  the  tide  flows 
furiously,  except  at  slack  a'^d  flood,  is  a  famous  place  for 
catching  sea-trout  with  rod  and  fly.     Everywhere  about  the 
bay  Indian  canoes  were  plying,  and  there  were  groups  of 
tents  on  shore,  with  hectic  salmon  spread  on  neighboring 
rocks  to  dry.     The  dusky  groups  carelessly  disposed  about 
the  grass,  men,  women,  and  children,  in   motley  dress  fit- 
ting on  native  mats,  and  skins  of  mountain  goats,  knitting 
mending  clothes,  plaiting  baskets,  lounging,  or  lazily  turn- 
ing the  half-cured  fis|i,  resemble  a  gypsy  camp  or  holiday 
picnic,  so  civilized  are  their  appearance   and  surroundings, 
tew  visible  traces  of  aboriginal  barbarism  remain,  only  some 
rude  hp  ornament,  or  clierished  habit  almost  obsolete  or 
amulet,   or    knick-knack,   transmitted    from  their  remote 
progenitors.     Red,  black  and  yellow  colors  predominate  in 
their  rust.c  fancy,— yellow  scarfs  for  the  head  or  neck,  red 
for  shawls  or  jackets,  and  black  for  frocks  and  skirts  of 
women.     In  the  city  streets  we  see  the  girls  in  pairs  loll  up 
to  the  shop  windows  with  the  easy  abandon  of  habitues 
laughing  outright  with  delight  at  the  glittering  objects  dis- 
played, as  m  jch  enraptured  and  absorbed  as  a  cat  in  catnip 
1  hree  generations  of  intercourse  with  white  people  whose 
policy  has  been  justice  and  humanity  and  tempered   with 
firmness,  have  won  their  confidence.     They  were  treated 
kindly  from  the  start,  and  no  white  man  was  permitted  to  do 
them  an  injustice  withe  it  being  punished  for  his  conduct. 
At  the  same  time  they  were  made  to  understand  that  they 
were  equally  amenable  to  wrong  doing.     They  were  also 
given  employment  in  pursuits  suited  to  their  proclivi  les 
and  aptitude,  which  brought  them  food,  trinkets,  and  cloth- 
ing they  had  before  been  destitute  of,  whereby  they  learned 
the  value  of  friendly  relations  with  the  new-comers.     Hence- 
forth we  shall  find  them  an  omnipresent  quantity  along  the 
coast,  varying  somewhat  in  features,  habits,  disposition  and 


intelligence,  but  all  well-disposed  and  tractable. 


Here  in 


ITINERAR  K. 


:upying  a 
licture  of 
nore  and 
was  just 
Drtance — 
.  few  old 
y  the  old 
he  ocean 
hich  she 
the  sub- 
flying  in 
ide  flows 
place  for 
ibout  the 
roups  of 
ghboring 
ed  about 
liess,  oit- 
knitting, 
ily  turn- 
holiday 
undings. 
nlysome 
lolete,  or 
remote 
linpte  in 
eck,  red 
ikirts  of 
s  loll  up 
labitues, 
icts  dis- 
\  catnip. 
!e  whose 
ed   with 
treated 
ed  to  do 
:onduct. 
hat  they 
sre  also 
cliviwles 
d  cloth- 
learned 
Hence- 
ong  the 
ion  and 
in 


17 


Victoria  the  tourist  can  pick  up  much  information  of 
Alaska,  together  with  curios,  photographs  of  scenery,  maps 
of  route  and  itineraries,  not  to  omit  a  "  Chinook  "  dictionary 
which  will  be  useful  to  him  at  all  times,  and  indispensable 
if  he  wishes  to  make  the  most  of  his  opportunities  to  trade 
with  the  natives  and  learn  the  ways  of  the  people  ;  all  of 
which  he  can  buy  cheaper  for  cash  than  up  the  coast. 

The  most   interesting  and  aesthetic  part  of  Victoria  is 
the  Chinese  quarter,  which  is  a  cleanly  business  suburb  of 
solid  red  brick  blocks;  with  buildings  two  and  three  stories 
high  ornamented  with  green  verandas.     Some  of  the  stories 
and  shops  are  very  spacious,  with  superb  iittings  of  gilt 
tapestry  and   carved  work,  comprising  stocks  of  general' 
merchandise,  drugs,  spices  and   specialties.     One  of  these 
Chinamen  is  said  to  own  real  estate  within  the  limits  worth 
$200,000.     I  took  occasion  to  go  through  all  parts  of  their 
reserve,  into  their  theaters,  joss  housesand  housesof  pleasure 
into  their  opium  joints  and  their  squalid  and  poverty-worn 
tenements  where  a  dozen  persons  are  herded  together  in  a  sin- 
gle room,  and  was  compelled  to  changethe  impression  which  I 
had  formed  from  popular  hear-say.   The  worst  I  saw  was  not 
half  as  foul  and  repulsive  as  the  slums  of  some  populous 
eastern  c.ties,  outside  of  New  York.     They  have  a  coniforta- 
ble  building  where  they  board  and  lodge  their  kinsfolk  when 
they  first  arrive,  or  when  sick,  or  out  of  work,  or  on  a  visit 
from  the  interior.     It  is   a  sort  of  hotel-hospital      There 
are  no  Chinese  beggars,  for  «•  John  "  takes  care  of  his  own 
in  purse  and  person,  and  will  even  return  their  dead  bodies 
to  China, // ^^j/m/.     The  impression  that  the   return   of 
dead  Chinamen  is  imperative,  is  a  myth,  and  absurd  on  the 
tace^f  It;  but  the  prejudiced  will  believe  any  thing     I 
found  them  engaged  in  every  kind  of  occupation,   except 
the  very  highest,  and  was  amazed  at  their  general  thrift 
sobriety,  and  intelligence.     The  policy  of  the  Canadians  to- 
ward these  Mongolians  is  much  more  liberal  than  ours— as 
It  has  been  with  the  Indians,-and  in  course  of  time  they  will 
surdy   profit  by  ,t.     In  British   Columbia  the  occidental 
section  of  the  Howery  Kingdom  blooms  and  blossoms  as 
the  rose-a /.a  rose,  as  it  were,  whose  fine  points,  not  all 
of  thorns,  might  be  studied  with   advantage   if  we  would 
21  f  ^  i*"'  '"';    u""^  *'  *'  whispered  in  the  inner  chamber 
of  »    ^\.t^^v^  ^^'  '"'  ^''^  numbered.     The  conditions 
ot  a    mighty  dispensation  are  about  to  be  fulfill  d      The 
time  is  near  at  hand  when  the  Chinese  will  be  at    .bertv  to 
cut  off  their  cues  nn^  dispenie  with  their  lar?*  «I..^ve« 

say  that  a     .rding  to  a  prophecy  in  one  of  their 


<i 


^^^:,^j*<wK,4i3^at^-.v  aBwaoeRSBMeiiic,,; 


i8 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


!     I 


!ln 


sacred  books,  the  reigning  dynasty  that  imposed,  centuries 

and  the'  n"''"'"  "^  ^'^''  "°^  '"  ^°S"^'  ^'l'  come'to  an  en^' 
nJrl      Kf"  S^^^'-T^"'  ^''1  '"^ke  the  abolishment  of  both 
perm.ssible-an  act  devoutly  hailed  by  Chinamen     Thence 
orth,  these  msignia  of  race  distinctions  will  nS  be  any  more' 
imperatively  imposed.      Obstacles    to    naturalization    and 
American  citizenship  will  be  removed.     Indeed,  the  davs  of 
immunity  are   already   being  anticipated,    and    score!   o 
Ch  nese  here  and  in  the  United  States  arelaking  out  papers 
Leading  celestials  assert  that  the  movement  will  soon  be 
come  general,  and  that  most  of  their  people  in    he  souih 
west  will  soon   proceed  to  become  American  cidzens  and" 
permanent  residents  ;  that  they  will  then  bring  ovetS 
w.vcs  and  children  and  spend  their  earnings  hefe     and    hat 
all  the  money  which  has  hitherto  been  sent  abroad  Lr  thei 
support  will  be  "blowed  .into"  the  treasury  of  the  U.^ej 

"  henth.,    .'"'^'  '^^   P"''^"^^   ^"^    long-suffering   of     he 
heathen     in  consequence  of  their  two  fold  religious  and 
political  disabilities,  are  worthy  of  admiration.     Yo^l  free 
country  such  inflictions  are  hard  to  bear 

veemtTonUl?h°'''  ''^''  \^"'  "°''^^''  '^^^^  exuberance  of 
vegetation  which  surprised  me  still  more  when  I  reached 
Alaska.  I  he  maple  leaves  were  larger  than  I  cou  W  sp  n 
a  ders  grew  into  trees  ;  fruit-frees  b?oke  under  the  weitht 
l!?-'"^"  '  honeysuckles  grew  rank,  and  moss  clung  to fhe 
--ees  in  great  masses ;    ferns  were  several  feet  in  length 

thfal'ncSelv'^  "I  "  '' v  '  '  ^^°"'"^  ^'^^  ^^  "P -to 
ul^\^.  T  ^'  ,  ^^^^'■ythmg  on  this  coast  is  gigantic, 
from  the  rocks  and  mountains  and"  big  trees"  to  the 
Chinese  immigration,  the  forest  fires,  and  the  ambition  of 
the  politicians.  No  wonder  that  the  people  of  the  Pacific 
coast  claim  to  be  the  most  favored  in  thi  world  theJab 
sorb  the  beneficence  of  the  Creator  '       ^ 

stiUon' wilil'^  ^''""i  ^J''""^'  ^;  ^^^^^"•'"^"Jt,  there  is  a  naval 
station  wih  a.senal,  hospita',  dock-yard,  and  powder  ma^- 
azine  the  latter  located  on  an  island.  Thedrv-dock  is  ^Mh 
stantially  built  of  concrete  faced  with  sandsTon^anl  w  i 
cos  when  fully  completed  a  half  mi'' on  of  dolla  s  I  he 
harbor  is  one  of  the  deepest  and  securest  in  the  world 


ITINERARY.— Continued. 


rvinV tv"°  IZl^^^^  *°  ''^"'P  ^"^  P'°^'^'°"  ^  steamer,  car- 
rying tv     hundred  persons,  and  get  her  under  wav  for  a 

ami  crates  of  fruit,  and  ice,  and  carcasses  of  beef  are  trun 
died  aboard  and  stowed  conveniently  for  the  steward's  daX" 
and  t'h    H.f '^P  f  ^  '^^^  "'■^  snugly  Lused  between  decks^ 
twkf  n?   h    l^}}'^^^^^  steer  is  forced  up  the  gangway  bv  a 
twist  of  the  tail  so  excruciating  that  it  wrings  out  a  XaL 
tion  of  ox-tail  soup  for  next  day's  bill  of  f^e       Thef the 

Alaska  ^^^        "■  "^^  departure-bound  for 

.    First,  there  is  an  eight  hour's  run  of  70  miles  to  the  Rrif 
ish  port  of  Nanaimo  for  coal,  in  the  course  of  whU    if  [£ 
atmosphere  be  clear,  the  snow-clad   peaks  o    The  Cascade 

the"fea    7ZT'  "'"  ^PP"''^  ''^^  ^'^y^'^^  rampan  across 
150,000  tons  per  annum.     Departure  Bay  and  Nana  mo  nr^ 
Hence  ^hroulhr /S„'r'^:,r;Sr:i.'„7j^i'^r7Te 


use  and  clearing     Everv  bnrl- 


sicaaicr  busiiy  studies  charts,  picking  out  the 


course  of  the 


■rr*T- 


ao 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


liiH: 


ship  in  advance,  and  locating  her  hourly  whereabouts.  Hour 
after  hour   there   succeeds  an  alternation  of  deep  narrow 
channels  hemmed  in   by  mountains,  and  long  reaches  of 
open  water  which  glisten  with  the  scintillations  of  the  sun. 
Deep  bays  reach  far  into  the  land,  and  projecting  points 
mvite  the  lambent  breezes  of  the  sea.     Here  and  there  are 
shoals   with   warning  beacons,  and  tide-rips   churned    by 
counter-currents  into  foam,  into  which  if  a  vessel  without 
steam  be  caught,  she  drifts  on  dangers,  powerless  to  escape. 
Of  such  mischances  we  see  some  victims  now  and  then  high 
and  dry  on  sunken  reefs,  keeled  over.      Sometimes,  when 
runnmg  close  to  land  the  jutting  ledges  seem  about  to  pour 
their  leapmg  waterfalls  bodily  upon  the  deck,  and  over- 
reaching boughs  almost  brush  the  taffrail  as  we  pass.     All 
the  shores  are  lined  with  drift-wood  and  stranded  trunks  of 
enormous  fees,  weather-worn  and   naked.      The  average 
rise  of  tide  is  eighteen  feet,  and  on  the  ebb  and  flow,  its 
velocity  through  the  narrow  channels  reaches  nine  miles  an 
hour,  so  that  vessels  have  to  make  intelligent  forecast  of 
time  of  tide,  of  fogs,  and  hours  of  moonlight.     To  attempt 
the  passage  except  op  flood  and  slack  is  to  court  destruc- 
tion, for  although  the  mean  depth  of  water  is  sometimes 
seventy  fathoms,  the  tortuous  straits  are  filled  with  hidden 
rocks.     The  first  and  worst  of  these  is  "  Seymour  Rapids," 
a  passage  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide,  about  nine 
hours  run  from  Nanaimo  ;  and  here  in  the  awful  swell  and 
vortex  which  lashes  each  broken  shore  with  the  rage  of 
Niagara's  whirlpools,  the  U.  S.  man  of  War  "  Saranac  "  went 
down,  shivered  on  a  sunken  rock  ;    and  in  the  self-same 
place,  by  an  extraordinary  coincidence  of  mischaijces,  the 
steamer  "  Grappkr  "  was  burned  and  sunk.     She  was  carry- 
ing Chinese    coolies,    of  whom    seventy  vainly  struggled 
momentarily  with  the  surging  waves,  and  disappeared  ;  but 
they  do  say  that  their  bodies  periodically  come  to  the  sur- 
face, and  pitch  about  the  eddies,  with  pigtails  streaming 
wildly  in  their  wake,  though  the  more  matter-of-fact  opinion 
is  that  the  objects  seen  are  only  strings  of  kelp  drifting  on 
the  tide.     Other  dangerous   passages  are  Grenville  Strait 
and  Peril  Strait.     For  the  rest,  the  journey  is  at  present 
without  risk  or  peradventure,  and  with  ordinary  seaman- 
ship and    prudence,    depending   much    upon    experienced 
pilots,  may  be  made  with  less  discomfort   than    the   pas- 
sage of  Long  Island  Sound ;    for  the  sweep  of  the  ocean 
blasts  seldom  reaches  these  sheltered  by-ways.     Fogs  are 
chronic,  however,  for  eight  months  of  the  year,  and  apt  to 
occur  at  early  morning,  all  the  summer  long,  though  they 


tTINERAR  y. 


21 


^X^^y'^^'^P^  ^l^''^-^  •' Jor  navigators    have   learned    to 
evoke  the  echoes  from  the  enfilading  walls  and  headlands 
by  resonant  blasts  of  the  steam  whistle,  and  so  estimat 
their  courses,  whereabouts,  and  distances 
...lu'^  ^'?^  passengers  have  been  two  or  three  days  at 

^=  Af  .^^-^f  n°  "°'''  """""y  °^  *h^  ''■•^'^s  of  the  ship,  as  well 
as  of  their  fellow- voyagers.  They  have  topics  in  common 
which  promote  familiar  intercourse  ;  and  so,  between  the 
scenery  the  log,  the  bill  of  fare,  and  themselves,  they  find 
strong  ties  of  mutual  sympathy.  Furthermore,  the  sailor? 
had  a  bear  aboard,  named  "  Pete,"  which  was  raised  on 
blge  water  and  was  very  tame;  a  black  setter,  a  companion 

fLu  ^'l'  '/I'^y  ^^'''^'  '  ^"d  ^  fi"^  'on^-cat  all  of  whise 
auellects  had  been  largely  developed  by  their  assocTatUDn 
7rlnnTT  ""^  ^^ipmates.  I  know  of  no  better  rab^ 
school  for  bears  than  a  voyage  of  this  kind  ^ 

l<rom  the  head  of  Vancouver   Island   to  the   Alaskan 

line     flanked   by    innumerable    islands.     The    mountains 

fis'e  to  LnvT'  7  'f^.'^'  "1"  ''  ^^^"-"^  Nar'o's  they 
rise  to  fully  3,000  fe-t,  directly  out  of  the  sea  •  some  of 

hem  with  snowy  peaks,  and  numerous  water-fans'tumbhng 

conTfers'''  ts'tl  ?TT'  '?'  .™^^^  ''  '^e  base  with 
coniters.     As  tlic  civilization  of  this  region  is  mairlv  aoart 

from  the  route  of  the  steamer,  and  unseen  by  Tourists  who 
imagine  it  all  unsettled,  I  venture  to  prompt  the  reade? 
from  the  pages  of  the  West  Shore  Magazine,  so  that  erron- 
eous impressions  may  not  obtain.     Some  mav  be  astoniXn 

''w:r^e"d"'"^U°^^'^  ^"^•'^"^'  "'^^  long"%ce7avrgT     ' 
We  read  :     "  I  he  population  of  this  region  is  chieflv  In 

d.an,and  they  are  both  intelligent  and   industrious     ner 

forming  nearly  all  the  labor  of  the  two  industr  es-salmon 

canning  and  lumbering-which    have  gai  "ed  a    foo  hol3 

there.     In  going  north.   Rivers  Inlet  is  th,    first  reached 

where  industries  have  been   established.     At  its  head  t^i"- 

uated  the  village  of  Weekeeno.     On  the  fn  et  are  tto  sa  ' 

thrhe':d"r«urr'r.'^"r'"-     ^^^"^  Coola.ls  seated  i; 
T^  ^d      •?   ^'^^  Channel,  on  the  North  Bentinck  Arm 
It  IS  the  site  of  a   Hudson's  Bay  company  post  and  ve.?. 
ago  was  the  landing  place  for  V  CarilL^^ni^es      BeUa 

ac'ro  sfhr;'rntv""''i?'''  ^'"'^"^  ^"*-'"S  the  arm  '^om 
of  rich  del^.   1      i"'-  K  "u"^  ''  ^  t""^^'  ''^  «""^e  2,000      res 

Island  ne^r  thrhL,  1  f  a/^.  ^?"  ^  ^'^^^  »'"^'  ^n  Campbell 
vt  ".'--■  ^'^  "^  ^''^^"'^  ^^""^'  4°o  miles  norfh  nf 
^  ictu.xu.     i  acre  are  three  Indian  villages,  with  a  combine"d 


as 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA, 


:  t 


population  of  500.  The  next  important  point  is  the  mouth 
of  Skeena  River,  a  large  stream  flowing  from  the  interior. 
It  is  a  prolific  salmon  stream,  and  there  are  three  canneries 
on  its  banks  ;  one  at  Aberdeen,  another  at  Inverness  Slough, 
and  a  third  at  Port  Essington,  near  its  mouth,  where  there 
IS  a  small  village  of  traders,  fishermen  and  Indians.  The 
river  is  navigable  for  light  draught  steamers  as  far  as 
Mumford  Landing,  sixty  miles  inland,  and  200  miles  further 
for  canoes.  There  are  two  missionary  stations  on  the  river, 
and  along  its  course  are  many  spots  favorable  for  settle- 
ments. 

"  Sixteen  miles  beyond  the  '^outh  of  the  Skeena  is  the 
town  of  Metlakahtla,  on  the  Tsimpsheean  Peninsula.    There 
are  a  store,  salmon  cannery,  a  large  church  and  school- 
house.   This  is  an  Indian  missionary  station,  about  which  are 
gathered  fully  i  ,000  Tsimpsheean  Indians,  who  have  been 
taught  many  of  the  mechanical  arts.     They  have  a  saw- 
mill, barrel  factory,  blacksmith  shop  ;  live  in  good  wooden 
houses;  do  the  work  at  the  cannery,  and  are  industrious  in 
many  other  ways  ;  the  women  having  learned  the  art  of 
weavmg  woolen  fabrics.     Fifteen  miles  beyond  Metlakahtla, 
on  the  northwest  end'  of  the  same  peninsula,  is  the  impor- 
tant station  of  Fort  Simpson,  separated  from  Alaska  Terri- 
tory by  the  channel  of  Portland  Inlet.     This  is  one  of  the 
finest  harbors  in  British  Columbia,  and  was  for  years  the 
most  important  post  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  in  the 
upper  country,  furs  being  brought  there  from  the  vast  inte- 
rior.    Besides  the  company's  post,  the  Methodist   Mission 
has  buildings  valued   at   $9,000.     There    are   about   800 
Indians  in  the  village,  most  of  them  living  in  good  shingled 
houses  and  wearing  civilized  costumes.     They  are  governed 
by  a  council,  and  have  various  organizations,  including  a 
temperance  society,  rifle  company,  fire  company  and  a  brass 
band.     They  earn   much  money  in    the  fisheries.     Forty 
miles    up    the    Portland   Channel    is  the  mouth  of   Nass 
River,  a   very  important   stream  in  the   fishing   industry, 
being  the  greatest  known  resort  of  the  oolachan.     Two  sal- 
mon canneries,  a  saw-mill,  store,  two  missionary  stations 
and  several  Indian  villages  are  situated  along  the  stream. 
The  climate  is  favorable  to  the  growth  of  fruit,  cereals  and 
root  crops  near  the  coast,  and  there  are  a  number  of  quite 
extensive   tracts   of  bottom   lands,   requiring  only  to   be 
cleared    to  render    them   fit   for   agriculture    or  grazing. 
Further  up  the  stream  there  are  a  number  of  good  locations^ 
and  .several  settlements  have  been  made.     Gold  is  found  in 
small  quantities  along  the  river. 


».     IThyTERARY. 


23 


A  special  feature  of  the  province  is  the  outlying  group 
of  large  islands  known  as  the  Queen  Charlotte  Islands,  the 
upper  end  lying  nearly  opposite  the  southern   extremity  of 
Alaska.     They  are  three  in  number— Graham,  Moresby  and 
Frovo  it— and  are  about  170  miles  long  and  100  wide     They 
are  mountainous   and  heavily  timbered,  and  the  climate  is 
more  genial  and  the  rainfall  less  than  on  the  mainland  coast, 
Along  the  northern  end  of  Graham,  the  most  northerly  of 
the  group,  IS  a  tract  of  low  lands  thirty-five  miles  in  extent, 
and  much  level,  arable  land  is  to  be  found  elsewhere  which 
only  requires  clearing.     There  are    also    many  extensive 
marshy  flats  requiring  drainage  to  render  them  fit  for  culti- 
vation.    The  mineral  resources  of  the  islands  are  undoubt- 
edly great.     The  only  industry  now  established  is  the  fac- 
tory of  the  Skidegate  Oil  Company,  on  Skidegate  Island  in 
a  good  harbor  at  the  southern  end   of  Graham  I?iland      In 
connection  with  this  is  a  store.     The  Hudson  Bay  Company 
has  a  store  and  a  trading  post  at  Massett,  near  the  upper 
end  of  Graham  s  Island,  where  there  are  a  Protestant  Mis- 
sion and  a  large  Indian  village. 

"  There  are  several  villages  on  each  of  the  islands  of  the 
group  which  are  occupied  by  Hydah  Indians,  the  most  in- 
telligent of  the  aboriginal  inhabitants  of  the  coast.  Their 
origin,  in  the  absence  of  any  written  record  or  historical 
inscriptions,  is  an  interesting  subject  for  speculation  Their 
features,  tattooing,  carvings  and  legends  indicate  that  they 
are  castaways  from  Eastern  Asia,  who,  first  reaching  the 
islands  of  Southern  Alaska,  soon  took  and  held  exclusive 
possession  of  "the  Queen  Charlotte  group.  Their  physical 
and  intellectual  superiority  over  the  North  Coast  Indians 
and  also  marked  contrasts  in  the  structure  of  their  languase' 
denote  a  different  origin.  They  are  of  good  size,  with  ex- 
cepttonably  well  developed  chests  and  arms,  high  foreheads 
and  lighter  complexion  than  any  other  North  American 
Indians. 

"Massett,  the  principal  and  probably  oldest  village  of  the 
Hydah  Nation  IS  pleasantly  situated  on  the  north  shore  of 
Graham  Island  at  the  entrance  to  Massett  Inlet  Fifty 
houses,  great  and  small,  built  of  cedar  logs  and  planks,  with 
a  forest  of  carved  poles  in  front,  extend  along  the  fine 
beach.  1  he  house  of  Chief  Weeah,  is  fifty-five  feet  square 
containing  timbers  of  immense  size,  and  planks  three  feet 
and  one-half  in  width  and  eighteen  inches  thick  The  vil- 
lage now  has  a  population  of  about  250,  the  remnants  of  a 
once  numerous  people,  the  houses  in  ruins  here  having 
accommodated  several  times  that  number.    Massett  is  the 


24 


OUR  NEIV  ALASKA. 


i:| 


jij. 


Shipyard  of  the  Hydahs,  the  best  canoe-makers  on  the  con. 
tinent,  who  supply  them  to  the  other  coast  triles     Here 
may  be  seen  m  all  stages  of  construction  these  canoes,  which 
hilTtv  """-Ph"''^'  fvf  ^"^^P^'-f^ct  models  for  service  and  of 
S  ^'  ^i       '  m/^^  '^^""^^   °^  'h^  aristocracy   of  Hydah 
land.      Other  villages  are    the  offshoots  from  the  parent 
cclony,  caused  by  family  and  tribal  feuds  and  quarrels  " 
«nm!  fi°f?^     "°^  included  within  the  limits  of  Alaska,  being 
some  fifteen  miles  south  of  its  frontier,   lam  pleased  to 
be  able  to  give  fair  sketches  of  the  remarkable  Indian  settle^ 
mentofMetlakahtla.  above  referred  to.  not  only  as  an  in- 
n?^m    ^  advanced  state  of  civilization  to  which  some 
of  the  Pacific  coast  Indians  have  already  been  brought  but 
because  it  is  an  earnest  of  the  enviable  results  which  must 
surely  crown  our  own  endeavors,  if  properly  applied,  and 
therefore  an  encouragement  to  persevere        ^    ^^ 

Metlakahtla  is  truly  the  full  realization  of  the  missionaries' 
dream  of  aboriginal  restoration.     The  population  is  1,200 
and  there  are  but  six  white  persons  in  the  place.     Like  the 
mission    Indians  at  Fort  Simpson,  its  residents  have  also  a 
rifle  company  of  forty-two  men.  a  brass  band,  a  two  gun 
battery,  a  cooper  shop,  and  a  large  co-operative  store  where 
almost  any  thing  obtainable  in  Victoria  can  be  bought    We 
visited  this  port  on  our  return   trip  from   Sitka,  aSd"were 
received  with  displays  of  bunting  from  various  points,  and 
a  five-gun  salute  from  the  battery,  with  Yankee  Doodfe  and 
JasflvnT  ^^eb-d°f  thirteen   pieces.     The  Union-JacS 
was  flying.     The  church  is  architecturally  pretent-ous  and 
can  seat  800  persons     It  has  a  belfry  and  ?pire.    vestibule 
gallery  across  the  front   end,  groined  arches  Lnd    pulph 
carved  by  hand,  organ  and  choir,  Brussels  carpet  in  the  a  "s  es 
stained   glass  windows,  and  all  the  appointments  and  em-' 
bel  ishments  of  a  first  class  sanctuary ;  and   it  is   whX 
native  handiwork  !     This  well  ordered  community  o^cudv 
wo-story  shingled  and  clap-boarded  dwelling  nouses  of  uni^ 
form  size  25x50  feet,  with  three  windows  and  gable  ends  and 
door   in  front,  and  inclosed  flower  gardens,  and    macada 
?hel"f  ""'"r^"  '^n  "^'^  ^'°"^  ^he  entir;  lufe  o?s?reet 
The  ch,ef  peculiarity  of  these  houses  is,  that  none  of  them 
have  chimneys  the  apartments  being  heated  by  fires  buiU 
on  hearths  ,n  the  center  of  the  ground  floor,  and  the  smoke 
passing  ou  through  a  flat  cupola  in  the  roof,  after  the  fasC 
of  Indian  tenements  in  gene -al.     These  people  have  also  a 

the  church  capable  of  accommodating  the  whole  population 
It  IS  used  for  councils,  balls,  meetings,  and  for  a  drHI  room 


I  If 


\ 


ITINERAR  Y. 


as 


It  is  warmed  by  three  great  fires  placed  in  the  center  of  th,. 
building  and   lighted   by  side  lamps.     The   peol   dress 

h"7e  t^^l  Lr'""  ?;^'  ^"^'  ^-  "«t  s'urTbut'they 
nave  the  latest  fashions.     The  women  weave  the  cloth  for 
all   he  garments,  and  there  are  gardens  which  afford  ve^e 
tables  and  fruit  in  abundant.     It  is  as  cleanly  and  orS 
as  the  most  punctilious  Shaker  settlement.     1  fine  assort 
ment  of  Hydab  utensils,  plaques,  and  carved  work  is   on 
sale  here.     For  exquisite  beauty  and  quaint   desT^ns  fh^r^ 
IS  nothing  like  Hydah  ware  to  be  found  ^  he  whole' coast 
the'u'  S^Na  I'f  L^  "^^'^^  °^  "^">'  pieces  ifofview  at 
Wack  tafcos^  s^^?e      m'^^T    '"  ^^^^ington,  carved  from 
DiacK  taicose  slate.     Miniature  totem-poles    two  or  thrpp 

TA  r"f '  ''^'^  ^""^  material,'may  also  be  bought 
?ur?ent     ^^'   ^"^^"^^^  ^^  Canadian  money,    both  befng 

^^DeZlfTeZ'^  T^T"  ^°" ''^^  ^'^'^^^'   ''  ^^ort. 
j^tcensus  A7>erno.       The    transition   from   the  neat   anH 

Sef  HnrnTh  •?h'   '^'^?^  ^°   the  dilapidated  and  ha^^ 

of   rrnf  L  .       ^"'Idmgs-formerly  a  Russian  trading  post 
of  rank,  but   now  the  U.  S.  port  of  entry  of  Alaska    k 

not  flattering  to  spread-eagle  pride.     Whe^n  the  weatheJ 

stained  Custom   House   officer   formally  comes  oT  deck" 

conscientious    American   citizens    "  go    below ''    It    wac 

said  that   nothing   remunerative   to   any  bo Jy    ever  ToT 

rhim'to^  h'"'    ""^^     ^•'^"^"y    ''  w'as     'Lo   fog^°" 
for    him  to   discover  the  vessel,  and    this    fo?    berfm^ 

'p?errf ''"."''^"""^  P^!"^'^"^ '"  ^"^hat  district  tLtsmuT 
gled  goods  were  nowhere  apparent  until   on,>  nnr^r^^V?^ 

day  last  February,  CollectorTecher  by'  some  tiS'L'n? 
conveyed  through  the  circumlocution  office,  was  enabled  to 

TkTd  in'I^k^'"  "°  ''''  ^^^"  $45,ooo';orth  ofopfum 
K  .  .''^'''^  purportmg  to  cover  furs.  However  the 
Territorial  regime  is  full  of  irregularities  affecting  At h^r 
things  than  revenue,  all  of  which^will  b^peedUy  co^rrec^ed 
whenever  domestic  order  shall  succeed  official  chaos     But 

to  nlr.-7o'";^^^!?.^r^-  ^-'"  hold  no  "m?rror% 
vL..I  .v!  ^^  "^''^.''  "^'^  "^'"'■e  s^e  herself  to  better  ad- 
vantage than  upon  that  early  morn  at  Tonga..  1  here  1% 
no  fog  then  ;  the  early  sun  had  scarcely  ris!n  *  and  aH  fhl 
m'T??^^^''  which  painters  find  it  s^o  difficuft  to  imn 
filled  the  firmament  with  their  transparency  Not  onlvX: 
trees  and  rocks,  and  mountains,   the  moss    the   kelo^  h^ 

Snf"^'"^'^''^^^'^  °f  '""^  smokestack,  and  ti^e  rosy 
glow  of  morn,  but  f  :  the  fleecy  films  of  vapor  which  in 
voluptuous  summer  .  ^at  nigh  in'  the  upper  ^air-TtheLe" 


■ttaM 


a6 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


% 


like  canopy  embroidered  on  the  blue — were  mirrored  on 
the  water  ;  and  each  individual  wave  upturned  by  the  cleav- 
ing prow  formed  reduplicating  mirrors,  like  the  facets  of  a 
gem,  reflecting  a  consummate  picture  in  each  one.  It  was 
a  moment  of  perfectly  earthly  peace.  The  impressionable 
young  ladies  on  board  declared  that  it  was  "just  too  lovely 
for  any  thing.",  These  little  maids  from  school  all  keep 
faithful  diaries  of  the  happenings  aboard  ship,  nautical  and 
social,  the  distances  run  each  day,  the  places  called  at,  what 
the  steward  laid  for  dinner,  how  many  chickens  there  are 
left  in  coop,  what  the  captain  told  them  sub  rosa,  and  all 
the  special  and  private  information  to  be  picked  up  in  the 
purser's  state-room,  and  the  "  after-run."  They  make 
themselves  "  solid  "  with  the  officers,  tip  the  steward  and 
waiters,  and  even  button-hole  the  first  officer  for  best  boats 
when  little  side  excursions  are  afoot,  for  on  those  Alaska 
journeys  frequent  opportunities  are  offered  to  go  ashore  at 
the  regular  landings,of  which  there  may  be  ten,  besides  spe- 
cial trips  to  places  of  uni  .sai  interest ;  after  each  visit  the 
cabins  and  state-rooms  are  littered  with  ferns,  mosses,  wild 
flowers,  clam  shells,  bits  of  mineral,  slippery  kelps,  Indian 
curios  and  souvenirs  of  all  sorts  brought  aboard.  One  of 
these  little  exploring  parties  once  came  across  a  member  of 
the  ship's  crew  digging  a  hole  in  the  ground  on  a  secluded 
point,  and  when  he  told  them  he  was  to  get  three  dol- 
lars for  burying  a  dead  Chinaman  who  had  been  sent  over 
from  the  Steamer  in  the  yawl,  they  were  paralyzed.  The 
body  lay  on  the  ground  beside  him,  covered  with  a  coat. 
In  their  view  such  a  summary  disposal  of  a  corpse  was  not 
at  all  in  accordance  with  civilized  customs,  but  it  seemed  to 
be  approved  in  Alaska.  This  incident  was  of  course  duly 
noticed  in  the  diaries,  with  comments.  So  also  was  the  ad- 
venture of  the  "  rooster  and  the  cook."  The  chicken  coop, 
it  seems,  stood  on  the  hurricane  deck  in  the  lee  of  one  of 
the  paddle-boxes,  and  passengers  would  often  stop  on  their 
matutinal  turns  aloft  to  inspect  or  feed  the  feathered 
inmates,  and  speculate  upon  the  uncertainties  and  vicissi- 
tudes of  galley  life.  On  these  occasions  the  chickens  were 
always  inclined  to  be  sociable  and  would  scuffle  with  each 
other  for  donations  ;  but  it  was  remembered  that  whenever 
the  cook  or  his  assistant,  both  of  whom  were  Chinamen,  ap- 
proached the  coop,  the  apprehensive  flock  fled  to  the  rear 
and  bunched  up  in  the  corners.  They  knew  the  difference, 
and  no  wonder  !  One  by  one  the  fatted  victims  were  sum- 
marily withdrawn  and  served  as  soup  or  fricassee,  until  at 
last  the  cutest  of  them  all,  an  old  rooster  who  had  hitherto 


ITINERARY. 


87 


evaded  the  intruded  hand,  was  fairly  cornered  ;  yet  he  did 
not  succumb  nor  famt.  Watching  his  chance,  he  slfpped 
John  s  grip,  and  getting  free  on  deck,  at  last  he  gave  both 
the  Chinamen  a  desperate  chase  around  the  texat  and  Se 
smoke-stacks,    this  way,   and  that   way,   and  back  ajin 

airhtndfcackhwV";"'  ''''\'''  flyingfpig-tails'stream^rng; 
all  hands  cack  ing  and  squawhng,  and  every  passenger  look- 
ing on  quite  interested.  At  last,  utterl/  Lhausted  the 
rooster  was  neatly  coraled  in  a  bunch  of  life-preservers 
(which  were  nothing  to  him  then),  when  he  suddenly  took 
wing  and  with  one  defiant  and  despairing  shriek  flew  over- 
board  and  was  drowned  !  He  deliberately  committrd  lu  . 
cide  rather  than  go  to  pot ;  so  he  escaped  (ne  ignominy  but 
the  passengers  lost  their  salad  ^' 

I  am  quite  sure,  if  I  desired  a  complete  epitome  of  ^he 
voyage,  with  no  details  omitted,  I  could  find  it  Tn  one  of 
these  same  records;  but  as  I  am  not  likely  to  meet  anv  of 
these  "  Vassar  Girls  Abroad,"  it  only  remains  foTme  to^re 
cite  the  bare  fact  of  our  due  arrival  it  Wrangell,  which  was 
fifteen  years  ago  a  town  of  considerable  importance  wh^re 
large  parties  fitted  out  daily  for  the  Stickeen  mir?es  located 

SiVcoTumhrf"TH"""J"'^"u^   ^^^°-  the  country  n 
±Jritish  Columbia.     There  the   whole   region   is  even  now 

filled  with  deserted  cabins.     There  was  I  temporary  gHm 

mer  of  brightness  for  Alaskan  prospects,  in  the  first  dawn 

of  the  new  "purchase,"   when  no  less  than   3  coo   peonle 

congregated  here  to  "  outfit."     Then  there  were  man/shops 

and  stores,  and  warehouses  on  the  wharf,  and  a^  sorts  of 

rude  places  of  amusement,  and  a  motly  and  unruly  crowd 

such  as  always  gathers  at  a  frontier  town.     Evelold  hufks 

^"ii^s^z^^i^^'^r^'^'''^'''''-  ^^'  the  pros':  t 

petered  out,  not  for  lack  of  mineral  so  much  as  lack  of 
suitable  mechanical  appliances,  and  so  both  the  mines  and 
the  town  are  now  almost  dead.  There  is  a  picturesque 
block-house  on  a  convenient  hill,  and  a  grassy  olazf  w-.th 
barracks  where  troops  were  quartered  then,  and  a  couple  of 
small  churches,  Catholic  and  Protestant,  on  the  crest  of  a 
ridge,  with  plank  walks  leading  to  them  but  the  ba'4ks 
are  now  occupied  by  the  Indian  Mission  of  Mr.  Youn,  and 
he  bethels  and  brothels  are  boarded  up  Every  thin  J^isdilan 
.dated  and  worn  of  pa-nt.  aud  spaciousLstelrTes  S  boar^d' 

7h^Zu  ^^u°  ^''/^^^  ^^^^ ^^''^^y  ^""^bled  into  ru  ns, w1  h 
the  walls  collapsed  and  the  roofs  fallen  in.  There  are  about 

orth^'mtinteV'"'^  '"''^"^'  "^^'^^  better  ho's:"  mX' 
ot  them  painted,  occupy  a  picturesque  curve  of  the  shore 
and  a  point  of  land  which  projects  into  the  harbor     A  foot 


■aaaolHiiiiw 


.ill! 


[  t . 


28 


OC//i  NEW  A  LA  SIC  A. 


II 


fii: 


bridge  also  leads  across  an  estuary  to  what  is  an  island 
when  the  tide  is  full,  and  here  are  some  of  the  best  built 
houses  and  elaborate  totem-poles.  This  part  of  the  town 
has  at  least  the  charm  of  supreme  novelty,  and  I  dare  say 
there  is  nothing  like  it  to  be  seen  in  all  Alaska;  a  hint  of 
which  visitors  should  take  due  note  and  govern  themselves 
accordingly.  I  suppose  that  there  will  be  a  better  civiliza- 
tion ere  many  years  have  passed,  but  this  peculiar  architec- 
ture and  ornamentation  stand  to-day,  not  only  as  striking 
i'lustrations  of  the  idiosyncracies  of  a  peculiar  people,  but 
of  their  native  capabilities,  made  more  creditable  and  more 
conspicuous  from  lack  of  superior  tools  with  which  to  cut, 
hew,  carve  and  smooth.  When  it  is  borne  in  mind  that 
their  boards  are  split  from  hemlocks,  riven  with  an  ax,  and 
planed  with  adzes,  and  that  shaping  and  finishing  is  done 
with  rude  knives,  it  is  apparent  that  the  impartial  judge 
will  allow  them  many  points  for  ingenuity  and  skill.  This 
special  subject  I  leave  for  a  future  chapter. 

Wrangell  lies  at  the  mouth  of  the  Stickeen.  One  of 
these  days  not  distant,  a  s.eamboat  excursion  up  the 
Stickeen  River  through  the  great  canon  which  it  has  cut 
for  its  passage  through  the  mountains,  will  be  one  of  the 
most  popular  and  exciting  of  all  the  experiences  on 
this  continent.  There  is  steamboat  navigation  for  one 
hundred  and  sixty  miles  from  its  mouth  to  Glenora, 
up  to  which  point  the  river  is  usually  clear  of  ice 
by  the  middle  of  April,  There  the  Dominion  custom- 
house is  located  on  the  supposed  boundary  line,  and 
the  scenery  is  of  the  most  romantic  character  all  the 
way,  the  wonderful  creations  of  nature  being  diversified  by 
trading  posts,  stores,  and  mining  stations  along  the  banks. 
Several  fine  glaciers  are  to  be  seen  en  route,  and  a  number 
of  tributary  streams  or  branches  flow  into  the  main  river. 
From  the  head  of  navigation  there  are  canoe  routes  and 
overland  trails  for  pack  trains  which  lead  to  the  gold  mines 
at  Deese  Lake,  eighty  miles  further,  and  tothe  noted  quartz 
lodes  and  placers  of  Cariboo  and  Cassiar  in  British  Colum- 
bia. The  strip  of  territory  owned  by  the  United  States  and 
1)  ing  along  the  coast  is  only  ten  leagues  wide  by  the  Rus- 
sian Treaty  of  1828  with  Great  Britain  ;  and  the  continual 
difficulties  which  arise  between  customs  officials  along  an 
indeterminate  boundary  line,  makes  its  speedy  official  estab- 
lishment in  every  respect  very  desirable. 

The  distance  between  Victoria  and  Wrangell  is  a  little 
less  than  eight  hundred  miles,  the  whole  route  so  land- 
locked that  not  a  qualm  of  sea-sickness  is  permitted  to  come 


s  an  island 
:  best  built 
•f  the  town 
I  dare  say 
;  a  hint  of 
themselves 
ter  civiliza- 
ar  architec- 
as  striking 
people,  but 
;and  more 
ich  to  cut, 
mind  that 
in  ax,  and 
ig  is  done 
rtial  judge 
dll.      This 

1.     One  of 

)n  up  the 
it  has  cut 
one  of  the 
riences  on 
in  for  one 
)  Glenora, 
;af  of  ice 
)n  custom- 
line,  and 
er  all  the. 
ersified  by 
the  banks. 
1  a  number 
nain  river, 
routes  and 
gold  mines 
oted  quartz 
sh  Colum- 
States  and 
f  the  Rus- 
;  continual 
5  along  an 
icial  estab- 


U.  S.  TRIPODS  IN  CHANNEL. 


is  a  little 
e  so  land- 
ed to  come 


ITINERARY.    ,  31 

aboard,  and  all  the  emissaries  of  Neptune  lie  low  amono- 
the  grottoes  of  the  deep.     The  further  northward  o^eTgoes 
the  grander  the  scenery  becomes,  the  higher  and  more 
rugged  grow  the  mountains,  the  whiter  theif  caps  of  snow 
the  denser  the  surrounding  forests,  and  the  more  numerous 
the  streams  which  leap  from  the  lips  of  the  crags     There 
are  fjords  deeper  and  blac  er  than  the  Saguenay,  open  chan 
nels  greener  than  Niagara.     Peaks  are  piled  on  Speaks  fn 
most  tumultuous  forms.     Outlines  serrated  and  sharp  cut 
the  upper  sky.     Black   ravines  and   dazzling  patches  o 
snow  alternate.     Scars  seam  the  entire  sides  of  lofty  moun- 
tarns,  where  the  spring  avalanches  have  scathed  them  of 
every  vest,geo   soil  and  vegetation.     The  inlets  are  oto 

fZfr^  '"  c^^''  ^"'  ^^""  '^^y  ''^t,  the  surprises  are 
bewildering.  Sometimes  it  is  the  bases  of  the  mountains 
which  are  revealed  and  sometimes  the  peaks,  with  a  filmy 
drapery  floating  athwart  their  sides,  or  a  golden  fleece  hung 
gracefully  over  their  broad  shoulders.  At  Kasaan  there"! 
a  wharf  and  cannery  with  an  annex  of  Indian  cabins  like  an 
old  ime  negro  quarter.  There  is  a  fleet  of  splendid  canoes 
employed  m  the  fishery,  drawn  high  and  dry  u^n  the  beach 
ready  for  use  but  now  tenderly  covered  with  sails  and  mats 

Th  P!;°'.f '  /h^^^.iT  '^^  ^''^"^at«  damp  and  sunshine 
The  hulk  of  an  old  sloop  long  since  past  usefulness,  lies  ori 
the  shore  cracked  seamed,  dismantled  and  keeled  over 
She  has  a  history,  for  once  she  smuggled  goods  for  the  old 
Russian  magnate,  Carl  V.  Baronovick,  and^  carried  many  a 
goodly  cargo  through  the  intricate  water-ways  which  it  did 
not  pay  to   watch.      Out    in  the   stream  the  U    S    sur- 

tr1?;i"fnH  f  ""'J  '•"'  ^,*  ^"'^^'■'  ^'^h  ^^^'■y  thing  taut  and 
trim  and  her  brass  aglow  with  polish,  like  the  "knocker  of 
a  big  front  door."  She  has  done  lots  of  work  on  the  coast 
and  marked  out  the  intricate  and  dangerous  chrnneb  w'th 
tripods  and  can  buoys.  Some  twelve  miles  off  is  a  Hy^ah 
village-one  of  the  few  to  be  found  in  Alaska-w^dch 
excursionists  sometimes  visit  for  the  collection  of  cur  os 
ts  head  ch.et,  "  Scowl,"  who  was  quite  a  celebrUv  in Ts 

orYble  oedi^^er"  T'J?'''l^  '  ^'^^^  '^^"^^  andL  hot 
orable  pedigree,  vouched  for  by  no  less  than  four  totem- 
poles  set  up  inside,  and  a  tall  one  in  front,  outside  made  o 
yellow  cedar  which  grows  abundantly  in  the  v  cinity    and 
IS  exceedingly  beautiful,  taking  a  finish  like  sa  fn  wood 

siLn'  S^^'^u'  '^'^t'"^t'^«  ^-  that  of  sandal-wood.     At 
Salmon  Bay  the  steamer  stopped  at  another  cannery  to 

«"^.i:irS„V^^!„»^-^^l.»>-r«!»  of  salted  sa.mon?and 
"     '    ^  -='j«  isnj,  :;car  nHicn  tneie  is  a  beautiful  lake 


32 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


I; 


connecting  with  the  ocean  by  a  tidal  passage,  into  which 
the  salmon  were  crowding  to  spawn.     There  is  a  double  fall 
at  the  outlet  cf  this  lake  ;  the  fresh  water  pouring  out  when 
the  tide  is  low,  and  the  salt  water  flowing  in  when  the  tide 
is  high.     Here  the  salmon  were  wedged  so  tightly  for  the 
whole  length  of  two  miles  that  they  could  not  move  at 
times.     The  rise  of  the  tide  is  some  eighteen  feet  and  the 
entire  channel,  from  the  surface  to  the  bottom,  was  jammed 
and  packed  solid,  so  that  if  a  plank  were  laid  upon  the  liv- 
ing mass,  a  person  might  have  walked  dry  shod  across  it. 
This  is  hard  to  believe,  but  easy  to  understand  when  it  is 
known  that  during  the  salmon  "  run,"  from  early  spring  to 
August,  the  vast  schools  which  swarm  along  the  shores  and 
fill  the  bays  and  inlets,  swim  in  compacted  masses  six  feet 
thick,  so  that  it  is  impossible  to  thrust  a  spear  or  lift  a  boat- 
hook  without  impaling  a  fish.     In  rivers  of  Oregon  the 
salmon  often  obstruct  a  ford  so  that  horses  can  not  pass, 
but  in  Alaska  the  astounding  aggregate  is  infinitely  greater, 
and  large  rivers  being  few,  they  crowd  into  available  inlets 
as  frightened  sheep  were  never  known  to  block  a  gangway. 
Juneau,  or  Harrisburg,  is  the  metropolis  of  Alaska — a 
town  of  several  stt-eetsand  shops,  stores  and  restaurants,  with 
a  trading-post,  a  dance-house,  a  brewery,  a  barber-shop,  and 
a  dramatic  company.     It  is  the  depot  for  the  rich  placer 
mines  behind  the  mountains  back  of  it,  and  the  live  center 
from  which  radiates  whatever  of  excitement  there  is  in  the 
territory,  outside  of  •'  government  circles  "  at  Sitka.     Gold 
ore  was  first  discovered  on  Douglas  Island,  opposite,  where 
there  is  to-day  in  operation  the  largest  stamp  mill  in  the 
world  ;  but  it  has  since  been  found  to  exist  in  paying  quan- 
tities on  the  main-land  in  the  mountains  back  of  Juneau. 
An  Indian  revealed  the  secret,  for  a  consideration,  to  two 
prospectors  named  Harris  and  Juneau,  who  at  once  staked 
out    claims    and  began  to  pan  out  pay    dirt   and   nug- 
gets of  free  gold  handsomely.     The  town  is  named  for  each 
of  them  respectively,  though  the  post-office  is  now  called 
Harrisburg.     It  is  growing  rapidly  and  is  orderly.     The 
miners  themselves  are  temperate,   industrious,  and    well- 
behaved,  and  are  gradually  gathering  around  them  a  com- 
munity of  good  citizens.     One  of  the  best  of  the  miners, 
Michael  Powers,  with  two  others,  was  unforinately  killed 
last  winter  by  an  accidental  cave  in  the  ''  basin  "  where  the 
placers  are  being  worked.     The  population  of  Juneau  in 
winter,  when  the  mines  are  idle,  is  fully  1,500.    The  laborers 
employed  are  chiefly  Indians,  with  a  few  Chinese.     There 
are  two  villages  of  Indian  huts  built  along  the  shore,  one 


iriNERARY.  33 

on  either  side  of  he  town.  They  belong  to  different  tribes 
who  are  tradUional  enemies-the  Auks  and  the  Takus-bS 
they  live  amicably  enough  with  the  white  settlement  sand- 
wiched in  between  them.  Fleets  of  canoes  ornament  the 
sloping  shores  in  front  of  the  cabins,  and  wolfis'i  dols 
brindled  and  yellow,  with  bushy  tail^  and  pricked  eaS' 
doze  and  loll  m  front  of  every  door.  As  a  general  rule  the. > 
bark  IS  not  dangerous.     Beyond  these  dusky  suburbs  there 

iTnMT/n  f^^''■?""'^';  ^'',^  ''''P'  ^^  ^^'^^  ^"d  colored  mus-' 
lin  ted  to  the  tips  of  poles  to  indicate  the  graves,  which 

Trrin  'th'r'  ''  ^°^'  ,"  "^^  '^'^^^  undergrowth  that 
overruns  them  in  a  single  season.     It  is  a  motley  throng 

which  crowds  the  wharf  on  "  steamer  day,"  but  not  aho? 
gether  so  savage  as  might  be  imagined.  It  is  purely  cos- 
t^onif  t"h  '"''t  ''"'  may  land  and  move  about  the  throng  or 
through  the  c-treets  of  the  town  and  not  be  stared  at  as  he 
would  be  in  any  equal  village  of  New  England.     It  mav  be 

as  '  f  rel  '•  "■  ^  H  "f  f  ^  !?''.^^'''^  '^  "°'  ^  ^h*^^  '"^^  '"a"  the  lot 
fLn'  .  w""^  .  *i"^er  ••  as  the  tourist  who  supremely  con- 
K  "  traveTer-^  h's  eye-glasses,  quite  aloof.  W\\  J  them 
nave  traveled.  Some  of  the  stores  are  branches  run  by 
leading  merchants  of  Oregon  and  San  Francisc  ,  and  I 
doubt  not  one  could  find  the  latest  cut  of  trowse.s  at  the 
tailors  shop.     Baths  there  are,  hot  and  cold,  and  shaving! 

comZrh!^  """Tf^^'  ^'""'^  ^^^"  ^^^'"^  th^  chairs,  quife 
comfortable  and  luxurious  to  observe  and  enjoy  I'here 
were  nc)  less  than  five  negroes  in  Juneau  last  year  Verilv 
the  African  is  as  widely  scattered  as  the  Israelite  !  Here 
the  ule  falls  twenty-five  feet,  and  when  it  is  dead  low  watt-r 
all   the  piles  of  the  wharf  stand   out  in  stark  aliimment 

fZlui  ""f  ^^"^''^^  ^""^  ^'^h  sea-weed  and  boreTby 
teredos.  So  destructive  is  this  well-known  sea-worm  that 
pi  es  have  to  be  renewed  every  two  years  at  a  great  deal  of 
labor  and  inconvenience,  and  it  is  not  unusual  to  find  them 
ac  ually  eaten  in  two  below  the  water-line.  A  ferry  boat  run^ 
half  hourly  from  Juneau  to  Douglas  Island,  where '.here  is 
a  saw-mil  and  a  considerable  settlemeia  connected  with  the 
stamp-mill  and  ore-beds.     In  the  center  of  the  h-bor  is  a 

land  hi!  ?h'  f^^  ""  P^'"*  stretching  out  from  the  main- 
land  half  the  distance  to  meet  it,  on  which  there  is  an  arti. 
ficial  n.irble  monument.     Back  of  the  point  is  a  ravine  with 
a  goouly  stream  tumbling  out  of  it  in  a  series  of  cascade 
t  fnc     [^'^kT'^'  '^^  *^*''"«^  ^'*  '^''  ^'"•-"es  back  in  the  moun 
fmhJ.H  ^    ^''^'^T'l^"^^^  *°  ^^ell  its  volume.     Up  the 

rth?"hrJn-^^f '"^l?  ^^  Precarious  foot-path  Lds 
10  tne  "basin,    alomr  the  e.itrpc  nf  cf-^^ :_; j 


HBH 


34 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


M, 


m^ 


m 


\^ 


through  thickets  of  "  devil's  club  "  and  luscious  salmon- 
berry  bushes. 

From  Juneau  to  Chilkat  and  Pyramid  Harbor,  so  called 
from  a  wedge-shaped  island  in  the  center  of  the  channel,  it 
is  a  twelve  hours'  run.  Here  are  the  two  largest  salmon 
canneries  in  the  territory,  together  employing  over  one 
hundred  hands.  From  this  place  a  novel  excursion  may  be 
made  in  canoes  or  boats  to  the  Chilkat  village,  where  the 
famous  blankets  are  made.  This  tribe  numbers  a  thousand 
souls  at  least.  The  women  are  expert  manufacturers  of 
baskets  and  mats,  as  well  as  blankets.  The  first  are  made 
from  grass  and  the  dried  fiber  of  sea-kelps;  the  blankets 
from  the  wool  of  the  mountain  sheep  and  goats,  woven  by 
hand  and  dyed  with  native  dyes  in  strangely  wrought 
designs  of  blue,  black  and  yellow.  These  are  chiefly  used 
in  dances  and  on  fete  days.  From  Chilkat  to  Kilisnoo  is 
the  next  stage.  Here  there  is  a  cannery  and  phosphate 
works— phosphate  made  from  the  scraps  of  herring  after  the 
oil  is  extracted. 

With  a  run  through  Lynn  Channel  to  Glacier  Bay,  where 
a  day  is  passed  in  viewing  the  greatest  wonder  of  the  coast, 
and  thence  through  Cross  Sound,  we  finally  reach  Sitka, 
which  is  usually  the  terminal  objective  point  of  the  long 
voyage,  but  is  really  a  considerable  distance  on  the  home 
stretch,  accomplished  by  a  long  detour  to  the  northward,  for 
Sitka  lies  in  latitude  fifty-seven  degrees,  while  Chilkat  is  in 
latitude  fifty-nine  degrees,  thirty  minutes.  In  the  gray  of 
the  early  morn  we  can  faintly  discern  the  spectral  summit  of 
Mount  Edgecumb  right  before  us,  and  trace  the  dusky  out- 
lines  of  the  rambling  town,  the  outlying  islands,  and  the 
hull  of  the  Pinta,  U.  S.  man-of-war  lying  restfuUy 
at  anchor  a  few  cables  length  from  the  government  pier. 

Thus  hastily  touching  at  points  of  interest,  I  have 
attempted  to  give  the  tourist  a  general  id.  of  what  he  is  to 
see.  In  a  general  way  also,  he  will  like  to  know  what  to 
take  for  the  voyage.  Presumably  he  will  not  require  an 
evening  dress,  even  should  a  ball  be  given  at  the  "  Castle 
of  the  Governor."  Indispensible,  however,  are  great-coats 
and  gossamers,  heavy  shoes,  warm  underclothing,  and  short 
skirts  for  ladies,  as  well  as  light  wraps  and  thin  garments  of 
all  sorts,  traveling  caps,  and  stout  canes  for  glacier-climb- 
ing. Those  who  are  fond  of  fishing  and  hunting  may  carry 
shot-guns  and  tackle  for  both  salt  and  fresh  water  use.  A 
blue-fish  outfit,  with  heavy  sinker,  and  a  black-bass  rod, 
with  reel  and  line,  will  be  sufficient.  Steamer  chairs  may  be 
bought  at  any  port  before  leaving  Victoria,  and  a  half- 


m 


ITINERARY. 


35 


dozen  books  will  afford  exceptionable  prstime     Finally  if 

and  coal  Zf 'J  f    ^ 5°"^?°""^  engine,  to  burn  both  wood 
and  coal,  and  half  a  dozen  skiffs  for  trolling  the  service 

rng^ha^"''''"^^^^^'^"'  ^'^  passengers'corrVs;"nd! 


ki-ootchman's. 


(i , 


■M 


lif:^: 


AS   EXCURSIONISTS   SEE  IT. 


ilill  I 


H;r 


There  is  undoubtedly  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  enthused 
and  susceptible  visitors  to  turn  the  bright  side  of  Alaska 
always  toward  the  lighl,  .or  surely  there  was  never  scenery 
more  grand,  or  climate  more  delectable-  From  the  first  of 
June  to  the  end  of  September,  throughout  the  whole 
excursion  season,  the  temperature  is  equable.  One  needs 
not  perspire  without  exercise.  He  is  always  cool  and  needs 
never  be  cold.  Morning  fogs  burn  off  by  ten  o'clock  ;  rain 
seldom  falls  ;  there  is  scarcely  wind  enough  to  fill  a  sail ;  and 
the  headway  of  the  steamer  makes  a  grateful  breeze.  On 
shore  there  are  few  insects  or  flies,  no  reptiles,  and  scarcely 
a  butterfly  or  beetle.  The  whole  excursion  of  fully  2,000 
miles  is  one  long  ^lithesomeholiday  without  a  blemish.  The 
thermometer  ranges  imperturbably  and  conscientiously 
between  sixcy  degrees  and  seventy  degrees. 

Looking  back  over  my  past  sojourn  on  the  North  Pacific, 
and  my  saunterings  along  its  extended  coast,  I  am  at  first 
bewildered  by  the  retrospect.  Remote  from  other  men,  and 
from  evidences  of  the  very  existence  of  men,  except  when 
intermittent  gli^mpses  are  vouchsafed,  I  seem  to  have  been 
adrift  in  a  new  creation,  such  as  is  sometimes  outlined  in 
our  dreamland.  1  am  lost  in  the  height  of  the  mountains, 
the  depth  of  the  sea,  and  the  immensity  of  space.  Every 
thing  is  on  so  enlarged  a  scale  that  there  is  no  familiar 
standard  of  comparative  measurement.  When  I  stand  in 
the  heart  of  the  Rockies  I  am  impressed  by  the  environ- 
ment of  mountain  chains  and  suow-clad  peaks.  I  am 
appalled  by  the  rugged  grandeur  of  their  height,  and  the 
interminable  depth  of  their  cafions  and  chasms.  The 
senses  are  crushed  and  oppressed  by  their  overwhelming 
weight.  But  in  this  archipelago  of  mountains  and  land- 
locked seas,  objects  individually  so  magnificent  in  them- 
selves as  to  startle  the  senses  are  multiplied  and  reduplicated 
until  they  paralyze  one's  comprehension  !  Looking  forward 
from  the  deck  of  the  steamer,  through  a  long  vista  nead- 
lands,  whose  clear-cut  outlines  are  set  against  the  sky  in 
graduated  shades  of  blue,  I  see  a  clievaux  de  /rise  of  snow- 


III! 


AS  EXCURSIONISTS  SEE  IT. 


37 
capped  peaks  so  high  that  Mount  Washington  or  Whiti. 

watch  these  submarine  pWechniSl,y"the  h^u^^"^"^^^^ 
Points  and  curves,  headlands  fiords  and   bavs   sea  wom 
rocks  and  wooded  islets,  rocks  and  reefs  alshL  low  wX 
narrow  channes  and  Dreciniton^  hpio-hfcTT  ^'^' 

and   shadowy  valleys,  "S^ ^^^T^^l^::^^ 
shores,  waterfalls  projected   from   dizzv  heiJhfc     ? 
pressing  toward  th'e  sia,  and  spUtdi^'off  ^'h'  ttnde" 

Ind?h'1'^  ?^""^  plash-these  characteHze  he  scene^' 
and  the  landscape  throughout  the  entire  voyage  Occas^o7 
ally  an  Indian  village  of  huts  or  tents  is  seen  on  cW 


fT 


38 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


m 


\  m 


m^W 


herds  of  sea-  ions,  which  seem  as  if  penned  up  in  an 
aquarium,  so  completely  are  they  inclosed  by  the  shadowy 
hills — one  watches  the  strange  forms  around  him  with  an  in- 
tensity of  interest  which  almost  amounts  to  awe. 

In  this  weird  region  of  bottomless  depths,  there  are  no 
sand  beaches  or  gravelly  shores.  All  the  margins  of  main- 
land and  islands  drop  down  plump  into  inky  fathoms  of 
water,  and  the  fall  of  the  tide  only  exposes  the  rank  yellow 
weeds  which  cling  to  the  damp  crags  and  slippery  rocks, 
and  the  mussels  and  barnacles  which  crackle  and  hiss  when 
the  lapping  waves  recede.  When  the  tide  sets  in,  great 
rafts  of  algge,  with  stems  fifty  feet  long,  career  along  the  sur- 
face ;  millions  of  jelly  fish  and  anemones  crowded  as  closely 
as  the  stars  in  the  firmament ;  great  air  bulbs,  with  streamers 
floating  like  the  long  hair  of  female  corpses  ;  schools  of  por- 
poises and  fin-back  whales  rolling  and  plunging  headlong 
through  the  boiling  foam  ;  all  sorts  of  marine  and  mediter- 
ranean fauna  pour  in  a  ceaseless  surge,  like  an  irresistible 
army.  Hosts  of  gulls  scream  o'-  -head,  or  whiten  the 
ledges,  where  they  squat  content  i-  run  about  feeding ; 
ducks  and  sandpeeps,  eagles,  ospreys,  fish-crows  and  king- 
fishers, the  leaping  salmon  and  the  spouting  whales,  fill  up 
the  foreground  with  animated  life.  Here  and  there  along 
the  almost  perpendicular  cliffs  the  outflow  of  the  melting 
snow  in  the  pockets  of  the  mountains  leaps  down  in  dizzy 
waterfalls.  From  the  caflons  which  divide  the  foot-hills, 
cascades  pour  out  into  the  brine,  and  all  th(  channels  are 
choked  with  salmon  crowding  toward  the  upper  waters.  I 
could  catch  thegi  with  my  hands  as  long  as  my  strength  en- 
dured, so  helpless  and  infatuated  are  these  creatures  of  pre- 
destination. At  the  heads  of  many  of  these  rivulets  there 
are  lakes  in  which  dwell  salmon  trout,  spotted  with  crimson 
spots  as  large  as  a  pea;  the  rainbow  trout  with  its  iridescent 
lateral  stripe;  and  his  cousin  germain,  the  *  cut-throat  trout,' 
slashed  with  carmine  under  the  gills.  And  there  is  another 
trout,  most  familiar  to  the  eye  in  eastern  waters,  and  doubly 
welcome  to  the  sight  in  this  far-off  region — the  Salvelinus 
Canadensis  or  '  sea  trout,'  which  I  have  recognized  these 
many  years  as  a  separate  species.  Here  he  is  in  his  gar- 
niture of  crimson,  blue  and  gold,  just  like  his  up  stream 
neighbors  of  New  England  and  the  Provinces,  only  here  he 
is  no  "  brook  trout  run  to  sea,"  for  all  the  denizens  of  Alaska 
brooks  are  Salvelinus  irideus,  and  not  at  all  like  him!  and 
no  naturalist  claims  that  these  last  two  are  identical. 

Sometimes  we  cross  the  mouth  of  a  sound  open  to  the 
Bea.  whpr*>  thp  full  fnrre  of  the  Pjrifin  wavps  rolls  in  tn  swell 


AS  EXCURSIONISTS  SEE  IT.  39 

the  symphony  of  the  inshore  surf.      There  is  a  stretch  of 

LiT5  "f^^^^'T  S"'^"  Charlotte's  sound,  and  of  fifVeen 
miles  at  Millbank,  where  even  in  ordinary  weather  oa^ln 
gers  show  the  effects  of  the  motion  ;  bJt  these  disagree' 
ments  are  brief  Some  of  the  cloud  effects  are  ^.ry  S' 
stretchmg,  as  they  do,  for  scores  of  miles  half-wa7un  the 
mountam  sides,  overhanging  the  peaks  or  pik7  on^op 
Sometimes  a  blue  pyramid  or  cone  will  be  seen  proiected 

sca^Je  furasM'^r'^  ^'^^'  "f  °^^^"^^^  the  whTLTd' 
scape,  just  as  the  glory  appeared  to  Jacob  when  he  slent 

the'hifu'  °^  '^™"''  ?"y  °^-""ence.  In  ?he  Chilly  mornings 
hiUs  a  e  ^^n^^^Tyt  V  '^''^  "^•^"'^^'  ^"^  ^"  the  little  foo^t! 
whin  .L  ^  ^'^^  bantlings  in  the  fleecy  vapors  ;  but 
when  the  warm  sun  mounts,  the  fogs  disappear  and  the  dav 
comes  out  almost  cloudless.  ^  ^ 

ortlTulf  Th  ''^''T  epitoniize  Alaska  in  a  brief  synopsis 
wiiaerness  of  forest-clad  mountains,  eternal  and  snow- 
capped,  outlined  by  the  clouds  and  circumscribed  by  the 
Sr;*nT.H°"''T"'y^"°^'"^°^^°f  what  lies  on  thesur! 
face  of  the  one  than  under  the  billows  of  the  other  The 
marvelous  and  the  amazing  are  combined  with  startling  effect 
wherever  we  go  Many  of  the  wonders  of  the  Yellowstone 
country  are  reduplicated  here.  We  have  in  Alaska  hot 
springs  lava  beds  and  volcanoes  as  well;  a  vo  cano  on 
Chernabura  island,  Cook's  inlet,  is  said  to  be  in  actTe  anS 

fnt?r.Jn?pP''''^°"'.^T"i'^"^"  t^^^ther  with  the  unique 
interest  of  Russian  and  Indian  life  added',  and  the  appar- 
ently  incongruous  juxtaposition  of  arctic  and  tropical  fea- 
tures,  which  are  continually  presented,  render  the  expert 
ences  of  the  tourist  so  delightful,  and  so  novel  withalZt 
It  needs  no  artificial  adjuncts  to  give  them  exoresslon  anH 

tTacre  "^Th  '"'  ^'^'^^  '"  ^'^  '^'^""^  "  -''"  S  \"t' 
tractive.     The  answering  mirror  held  up  to  nature  reflects 


ECONOMICALLY  CONSIDERED. 


Mf 


But  what  of  Alaska  that  is  practical  ?  Is  it  frigid  ? 
sterile  ?  God-forsaken  ?  a  land  of  perpetual  ice  ?  Will  any 
thing  grow  there  ?  Can  any  cunsiderable  population,  apart 
from  the  coast,  subsist  on  the  country  ?  Are  the  natives 
any  less  savage  than  the  seals  and  bears  they  hunt  ?  Are 
the  traces  of  Russian  occupation  Siberian  or  barbarian  ? 
Did  the  Muscovites  leave  any  thing  at  all  which  Uncle 
Samuel  wants  ?  Is  there  any  gold  or  other  mineral  there  ? 
Any  thing  which  the  Creator  does  not  regret  having  made  ? 
In  a  word,  is  our  new  possession  good  for  any  thing  at  all, 
except  for  another  "  National  Park  ? "  a  resort  for  tourists 
and  mid-summer  ranjblers  ?  I  answer  in  my  preface  with 
a  broad  declaration,  and  with  equal  emphasis  on  the  title 
page. 

Years  ago,  when  we  gathered  in  the  Louisiana  purchase 
for  the  sum  of  $15,000,000 — a  tract  in  itself  nearly  as  large 
as  Europe — there  were  immense  areas  of  it  which  were 
deemed  absolutely  worthless  ;  and  these  were  set  off,  in  the 
transaction,  against  the  more  fertile  tracts,  with  their  diver- 
sity of  climate,  soil  and  vegetation.  Especially,  that  very 
considerable  portion  of  it  which  is  now  known  as  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Dakota — although  a  population  of  more  than  half 
a  million  have  made  it  the  peer  of  any  state  in  every  thing 
but  privilege — was  disregarded  ;  it  **  didn't  count."  On  the 
maps  it  was  marked  "  American  Desert."  At  the  best,  in 
the  opinion  of  merely  superficial  observers,  it  was  only  an 
illimitable  buffalo  range,  rainless  and  treeless,  whose  russet- 
colored  grass  dried  up  in  June  for  lack  of  moisture,  and 
was  worthless.  Now  it  is  the  most  valuable  and  productiv; 
portion  of  the  entire  Louisiana  purchase ;  capable  of 
feeding  the  world  with  grain  ;  subsisting  domestic  herds  as 
countless  as  the  buffalo  which  oner  grazed  over  its  broad 
expanse  ;  munificent  in  its  out-put  of  precious  metals  ; 
underlaid  with  coal  measures  which  form  the  subsidiary 
reserves  of  the  region  lying  west  of  the  Mississippi  River ; 
seamed  and  interspersed  with  out-croppings  of  the  finest 
buildinof  stone  vet  discovered  -.  fiowinsr  with  « iilk  and  the 


ECONOMICALL  V  CONSIDERED.  41 

nchness  of  its  dairy  products.     Even  the  "Bad  Lands" 

frSm  oTe^-s  '.T'^l  pre-eminently  so.  incontradistincfion 
trom  otiieis  esteemed  not  quiie  so  bad.  liave  become  the 
chosea  grazing  ground  of  herds  which  supply  the  KaTt  with 
beef  and  of  horses  which  bid  fair  to  rival  the  swiftest  and 
sturdiest  stock  of  Kentucky  and  Vermont  So  Lr  from 
bemg  sterile,  the  soil  of  the  "  Bad  Lands  "  has  been  proved 
actually  better  for  general  farming  than  the  heavy  ten^adous 

of  i^l  ir  i  JhT'h"''^  ''^T^^^  ^"^  ^he  illimilable^terri  ory 
now  ascer  a^ed  "■  ^k'"'  ^^^''  agricultural  possibilities  are 
now  ascertained  to  be  co-extensive  with  her  boundaries 
1  his  impression  of  incapacity  was  founded  on  its  hvoer 
borean  situation.     But  practical  men  who  had  to  deal  wfth 
practical  measures,  upon  which  the  very  life  and  perpetuv 
of  the   Canadian   Dominion   depended,  went  forward    n 
advance  of  the  projected  railroad  through  the  coSnTrv  and 
ploughed  and  planted  at  intervals  of  evLy  twenty  mfes  to 
test  the  quality  of  soil  and  climate;    and  wS^thout 
tillage  or   protection,    the  answering   gr«.n   came  ud  hi 
bounteous  profusion  and  ripened  befSre^h;  aZ'n  fLt 
no  better  assurance  of  the  future  was  desired  ;  and  now  the 

d  cUhat  tt  n'  ^m"'^"  ^^^'^^  ^^'^^°^d  confidenUy  pre! 
a  renhfrl  t   ""  Northwest  will  have  fifty  millions  of  people 

rest  of  th.  r'f',  ""f  "^P^^'^y  *°  ^^^^  themselves  and  the 
rest  of  the  world,  if  need  be.     Indeed,  it  seems  incredible 
and  altogether  unaccountable,  to  those  who  inferthat  the 
climates  of  all  high  latitudes  are  rigorous  and  inhospUaWe 
o  read  in  the  current  newspaper  tekgrams  of  the  day  that 

ffiarr'XS"?    TTT\^'    ^^P^^    CreTk^'on 
reoruary  4th,  1886,  six  hundred  miles  west  of  hyperborean 

Winnipeg,  on  the  same  parallel  of  latitude ;  that  the  tem^ 
perature  ranged  from  fifty-four  to  fifty-seven  degrei^ 
Fort  McLeod  during  the  corresponding  week  •  and  fhat  the 
tains  of  the  Canadian  Pacific  Railroad  were  alUunning  on 
M.nl'T^^  ?',  ^."°^d'-'ft«  of  the  mountain  division  ^ 
Maple  Creek,  lymg  at  the  east  base  of  the  rocky  moun- 

1;Sh  r^'  '^t  '"""^"^"  °^  the  Chinook  winds  whiSia?e 
wafted  from  the  warm  bosom  of  the  Kuro  Siwo  Tr  Taoan 
current,  although  they  have  to  pass  over  four  gr^at  rnoun" 
tain  ranges-the  Cascades,  Gold,  Selkirk  and  Rfckies  each 
of  wh.ch  helps  to   cool  and   condense   the  atmosphere- 

CthrsinH?r°'''';^V'"°^°f  ^'^^'^^  i^  obstructedTnly 
Dy  the  single  barrier  of  the  coast  range  ^ 

._-L  '^^T^.  traveled  over  a  great  part  of  th«  British  Nnrfhw..cf 
auu  i^nusn  uoiumbia,  and  have  read  the  official  reportVof 


fJIT»«l'ipi 


4a 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


!tiH''i-: 


iili 


their  geological  surveys,  railway  engineers,  Hudson  Bay 
ofilcials  and  Indian  inspectors  ;  I  have  gathered  together 
all  the  facts  I  could  find  in  books,  and  listened  to  the  tales 
of  miners  and  traders,  and  old  settlers  whose  lives  have 
been  passed  in  the  ultima  thule  j  and  I  have  supplemented 
the  whole  with  the  observations  photographed  on  the  eye  ; 
and  having  gotten  together  all  this  testimony,  and  dis- 
covered that  the  physical  features  of  this  vast  region  and 
AL  -ia  are  much  alike  with  each  one's  advantages  and 
objections  reciprocally  counterbalanced  by  the  vagaries  of 
isothermal  lines,  I  am  prepared  to  believe  that  Alaska  is 
worth  all  that  was  paid  for  it,  and  to  predict  that  in  due 
course  of  time  it  will  surprise  the  expectations  of  its  pur- 
chasers more  than  despised  Dakota  or  the  Northwest  has 
done.  The  elements  of  wealth  pervade  it ;  they  are 
through,  above  and  around  it. 

Misconceptions  of  the  productive  capabilities  of  a  cotmtry 
spring  from  imperfect  diagnosis.  No  mere  superficial 
observation  will  suffice  ;  no  hasty  conclusions  predicated 
upon  general  appearances.  Nothing  but  a  thorough 
examination  of  the  soil,  flora  and  fauna  will  furnish 
testimony  of  an  absolute  character  that  can  be  relied  on 
Dakota  was  condemned  because  her  summer  rain-fall  was 
meager,  and  the  dry  and  arid  appearance  of  every  thing 
contrasted  most  unfavorably  with  the  verdant  green  of 
eastern  localities.  The  Northwest  was  condemned  for  iike 
reasons — with  the  inferential  objection  of  high  latitude 
added  ;  but  there  were  hidden  influences  underneath  the 
soil,  begotten  by  the  very  conditions  which  seemed  adverse, 
that  served  to  counteract  them.  The  book  of  nature  was 
left  wide  open,  but  men  neglected  to  turn  its  pages.  A 
high  latitude  is  very  naturally  suggestive  of  cold,  but  in  the 
code  of  climatology  latitude  is  less  arbitrary  than  isothermal 
line'  Even  in  countries  truly  frigid  there  is  a  season  of 
res  .c  from  inexorable  congelation.  Most  people  imagine 
Iceland  to  be  ice-clad  and  ice-bound  the  whole  year  round, 
and  yet  its  summer  lawns  are  verdant  with  rich  grass,  and 
the  meadows  are  spangled  with  buttercups  and  daisies ; 
pigeons  congregate  upon  the  house-roofs,  and  the  cows 
come  home  from  pasture  with  the  same  straggling  gait  as 
the  kine  of  other  lands.  Nine-tenths  of  the  children  at 
school  believe  the  Arctic  zone  to  be  a  realm  of  perpetual 
darkness  and  intolerable  frigidity  without  a  break,  and 
wouid  hoot  with  incredulity  if  told  that  its  inhabitants 
swelter  in  the  heat  of  her  mid-summer  sun,  and  that  nothing 
but  its  brief  duration  orevents  a  hiffh  develooment  of  ver- 


ECONOMICALLY  CONSIDERED,  43 

dure.  But,  compared  with  Alaska,  the  blessings  and 
fruition  of  other  northern  lands  in  either  heShere  are 
insigniftcant-British  Columbia  alone  excepted      ^  ' 

nr  P^ffi^'r^  the  modifying  influence  of  the  Japan  Ci:;rent 
or  Pacific  Gulf  Stream,  which  pro^-cts  its  vast  volume  of 
tepid   water  athwart  the  Aleutian  Isles    iJalreadt    L^ 
understood,  but  the  results  one  se.s   here  are  ha^d  to  rla 

laies.  ine  ettect  of  this  warm  current  is  eauivalpnf  t« 
twenty  degrees  of  latitude,  that  is  to  say  the  same  products 
which  are  ound  in  latitude  forty  degr.  .s  on  the  Knt  c 
thrive  in  latitude  sixty  deerees  on  t  vZ\^.  ^.  u 
but  little  north  of  the  lo'cati^n  oTsitka  ■  J'ofa  stl'f  far 
more  generous.     Fruits,  vegetables,  plants,  and  trees  are 

itt^fa  ^o  s^vlhLlh''  '"S^*^"   ^  ''  m'anifold  "rough 
LL      r.       ^'  ^^^,^'he  quality  of  flavor  is  not  always  as 

riatit^nr  p:  t'Xvi  r  Tro^- 1^^^  ^r^^^ 

Shasta,  California,Tn  la^tS;  f'orty^onr^eg^eil'l^htris^a 
httle  higher  than  the  latitude  of  New  York  City    Shasta  also 

Srun"f  V".',!""'   ""^^^'   ^^f^-«hell   almondV  and    supe  b 
pr  mes.    By  the  same  ratio  of  climatic  progression,  tomXes 
musk-rnelons  and  grapes  ripen  in  the  latitude  o    vTctor^' 
Lcauseof  the  hfV*^'.  coast-range  than  on  the  seaboard,' 
s' ve^ls  InS'rat"'"  ^^"^^^^^^^^  -^  ---^ty  from  excesl 

which  modify  the  climate  of  the  polar  regionr  s  set  for. h 

Sd  bv  tLf  i^  ^?  ^''''K  ^^^'^^^  -^  SL"4  •'  put 
hshed  by  the  Appletons.     By  that  influence,  ptacf  s  which 

pSy  urrrim^atd:"taS;  X-^USu^nHf  ta^ 
borne  north  by  the  Gulf  Stream,  who^  e  volure  and  temper 

•f clpTed  trbfrn"'"?.^'  "'^^  f  approach^:"cen"S  ;; 
frnmT  to  be  more  than  equal  to  all  the  heat  received 
from  the  sui  within  a  zone  of  the  earth's  surface  extending 
thirty-two  miles  on  each  side  of  the  oouator  Or  in  ?2k^ 
word  ,  ,.  ,,  ,^,^^,^^.^^  will  cLnSr  te,'^he'rounJ 
btfvfr'''''f '^"'"^•"^^'-'^P^^^^te  and  polar  Regions 

rJc  =ved   C/  r'  ''  'T^  '^  ""^-^°"^^h  of  all  theTea 
rvZ:]^'^^/^^^^  S""  by  the  North   Atlantic  from   th^ 
-^.v-H^u   ux  v^ancer  up   to  the  Arctic   Circle.      But  there 


ammatmmm^ 


44 


0[//i  NEW  ALASKA. 


.1- 


Mil 


are  other  great  oceanic  currents,  especially  the  Kuro-Siwo, 
which,  though  not  yet  subjected  to  as  careful  mensuration, 
are  believed  to  convey  as  much  heat  poleward  as  the  Gulf 
Stream.  Evidently,  then,  comparatively  slight  changes  in 
the  oceanic  circulation  would  increase  or  decrease  glacial 
conditions.  The  severity  of  climate,  in  Mr.  Croll's  view,  is 
about  as  much  due  to  the  cooling  effect  of  the  permanent 
snow  and  ice  as  to  an  actual  want  of  heat.  An  increase  in 
the  amount  of  warm  water  entering  the  Arctic  Ocean,  just 
sufficient  to  prevent  the  formation  of  permanent  ice,  is  all 
that  is  really  necessary  to  make  the  summers  of  Greenland 
as  warm  as  those  of  England."  It  is  obvious  that  a  large 
decrease  in  its  temperature  and  volume  would  lead  to  a  state 
of  things  in  northwestern  Europe  approaching  to  that  which 
now  prevails  in  Greenland.  The  causes  which  he  assigns 
for  changes  in  the  volume  and  temperature  of  ocean  cur- 
rents, he  declares  are  actual  and  explicable,  and  by  no 
means  based  on  mere  hypotheses  ;  all  of  which  are  set  forth 
in  a  most  intelligible  and  mterestmg  manner  in  the  volume 
referred  to.  Briefly  epitomized,  they  may  be  stated  in  Mr. 
Crolls  own  words,  as  follows  : 

"  The  causes  of  these  changes  may  be  found  in  physical 
agencies,  stimulated  or  checked  by  changes  in  the  eccen- 
tricity of  the  earth's  orbit,  provided  the  heat-transferring 
power  c  "■      :h  agencies  is  suffered  to  be  operative  by  such 

ograi  '  ^nditions  as  now  exist,  and  which  there  is 
1  ;t>  n  of  evidence  for  believing  have  be  -  n  materially 

I  ered  ^'  '^  the  glacial  epoch.  It  is  unnecessary  to  postu- 
latv.  *.  -  abmergencies  or  the  elevation  of  continents,  or  the 
existence  of  extra  inter-continental  channels,  transporting 
northward  additional  heat  currents,  and  thus  contributing  to 
ameliorate  the  climate  of  the  pole.  The  geographical  condi- 
tions and  the  physical  agencies  whichactually  exist  are  amply 
sufficient  to  account  for  all  the  facts.  When  the  eccentricity 
of  the  earth's  orbit  is  at  a  high  value,  and  the  northern  win- 
ter solstice  is  in  perihelion,  agencies  are  brought  into  opera- 
tion which  make  the  southeast  trade-winds  stronger  than 
the  northea.st,  and  compel  them  to  blow  over  upon  the 
northern  hemisphere  as  far  probably  as  the  Tropic  of  Can- 
cer. The  result  is  that  all  the  great  equatorial  currents  of 
the  ocean  are  impelled  into  the  northern  hemisphere,  which 
thus,  in  consequence  of  the  immense  accumulation  of  warm 
water,  has  its  temperature  raised  and  snow  and  ice  to  a 
great  extent  must  then  disappear  from  the  Arctic  regions. 
When,  ct^ntrariwise,  the  precession  of  the  equinoxes  brings 
round   the   winter   solstice   to   aDheljon.  the  condition  of 


ECONOMIC  ALL  V  CONSIDERED 

45 
things  on  the  two  hemispheres  is  rever^^r?    ^r.A  .u 
east  trades  then  blow  over  .mnn  /hi        4     "^.  '^^  """"^h" 
carrying  the  ereareouftnrPn^  southern  hemisphere, 

The  wa?m  watVr  bein^  thu     wh^r"'"  ."]°"«^  ^'^^  '^'^' 

northern  hemi^^here^^it  tem^emLr  .i^'"^"  '^°"^  ^^^ 
and  snow  and  ice  be^  ^"y^'^^^"^^  f'^ks  enormously, 
regions."  ^^^'"^   ^°  accumulate    in  temperate 

batten  UvLltruti?:ttl°r:!rf'^'^'^.  "^^^"  ^^--^ 
ing  to  the  time  renmrLd  hv  thl     ^^'-  P"' -^^^  (correspond- 

from  perihe!io,%?und  to  periheLTrnof'  """'"'  '°  ^^^^ 
assumed,  21  000  but  /,  , ,^^         ^  a  ^*'  ^^  '^  commonly 

of  from  ;o,ooo  to  i"  oco'^ea  ^r;  n^'.^^'^T"'^'  ^'^^''^^^^^ 

encethe  e^ctreme  of 'S'afdtJe  extreme 'of h"'/'  ^^P"'" 

'Th;'fi^'T-~^^  the  latter 

usTs't^  t"?  o:rwarmTn!r"oS  "''^^^^•  "°"  --^d  'ead 
nately  preva?le7d^:"ng"lsrages':j;^i^,t '^^^^^  '^^^  ^'^"■ 

-;;;alsoful^lCLt^-£S 

thicUmTe'lri:sT/at?;.'l"u?tar^^^  ^^  .^^  ^«  ^^-'^^ 
moderate  and  equable  than  fh../"  ^'  ^  ^H^-  ^^  is  more 

ponding  latitude  west  of  thl  r  ^1^7.  '"'^'°"  ^^  ^  ^°'-^««- 
summefs   cooler,  Tnd   wimcrs  ^n/h  fountains-enjoying 

portion,  the  averagVtTm'reriT  T'f^toX-e^s' w^^^^^ 
3  coii^mon  rani?e  betwp^n  fh*.  ,„J  •  /  .  aeg'ees,  with 
eight.'  degree?    A^mer  brea^^^^^^^^      ^^  a  maximum  of 


'.fflilliyw 


46 


OUR  NEV/  ALASKA. 


Date. 


Nov.  1885. 
Dec.      " 
Jan.    1886. 
Feb.      •' 


Mean  Temp. 


40.3 
36.8 

2().3 

37- « 


Precipitation 
inches. 


965 
ir,7o 

7.36 
18.84 


Max.  Temo. 


50. 

50.5 

48. 

53.5 


Min.  Temp. 


29- 5 
30.5 
4. 
24. 


Iti  the  rejj;i()n  fully  subject  to  the  influence  of  the  equato- 
rial current,  flowens  bloom  and  vegetation  remains  green  and 
bright  the  winter  through,  with  only  a  temporary  suspension 
for  rest  and  recuperation,  and  there  is  little  save  th 
almanac  to  remind  the  stranger  that  winter  is  in  transit, 
though  the  native  knows  it  from  the  increased  rainfall.  The 
warm  air  coming  off  from  the  Ciulf  Stream  meets  the  colder  air 
from  the  north  and  evokes  precipitation,  more  abundant  on 
the  main  land  coast  than  on  the  islands,  or  in  the  interior. 
And  it  is  this  steaming  moisture  which  clothes  the  mountains 
to  the  height  of  more  than  a  thousand  feet  with  their  dense 
growths  of  spruce,  pine,  alder,  hemlock,  and  cedar.  But  it  is 
not  always  calm  and  miki  and  delectable  in  that  region  ;  for 
the  Custom  House  officer  who  keeps  his  lonesome  watch  at 
the  tumble-down  post  at  Tongass,  which  is  the  southernmost 
limit  of  our  possession,  tells  how  the  winds  begin  to  blow 
about  the  istof  November  and  sometimes  hard  enough  to 
upset  the  crow's  nest  at  the  look-out,  and  whisk  the  shingles 
off  the  roof.  Frequently  he  is  weather-bound  for  weeks, 
and  once  he  did  not  taste  fresh  meat  for  four  months.  In 
mid-winter  snow  sometimes  falls  as  deep  as  four  feet,  an 
immense  precipitation,  but  it  seldom  remains  unmelted  for 
more  than  a  fortnight,  and  the  temperature  rarely  falls  to 
zero.  In  January,  1886,  it  reached  five  degrees,  the  coldest 
of  the  season  for  many  years.  Capt.  L.  A.  Beardslee,  com- 
manding the  U.  S.  Steamer,  JamesUrwn,  on  the  Alaska  Sta- 
tion, in  his  official  report  for  1879,  made  at  Sitka,  mentions 
the  appearance  of  robins,  sparrows  and  buntings  in  March, 
with  ducks  flying  north.  He  gives  four  hundred  and  sixty- 
nine  hours  of  blue  sky  out  of  a  total  of  seven  hundred  and 
forty-ft)ur  hours  for  the  thirty-one  days  of  the  month.  In 
April  about  one  day  in  seven  is  cloudy.  The  summer  up  to 
September  is  uniformly  dry,  with  an  equable  tempera* 'ire. 
September  temperature  is  s'xty  degrees  in  the  shade,  and 
seventy  degrees  in  the  sun,  with  a  good  deal  of  rain  gener- 
allv.  It  is  these  early  rains  which  prevent  the  ripening  of 
grains  on  the  coast.  Cereals  would  do  better  in  the  interior 
despite  the  short  summer.     All  kinds  of  vegetables  mature 


vfe-^^i/ 


ECONOMICALL  V  CONSIDERED. 


w^tt?  atSd't  Cn^t  "JeTr- "f  ^"'  ^^^^  ^^^^^^  the 
to  the  dryness  o  therlhnate  ?h?  '''!"""^^-  ^^^  testimony 
(vessel  of  war)  do  n^t  "uff  ^',f,„^^P  ;»'"  «ays  :  "  Our  gunl 
but  and  herring  fishinror  r  n^f         a  '  ^"^^  ^°^''*-       Hai'- 

arrive  in  September"' can v^lbrckfrd  't%  '^^^  ^"^"^^ 
geese  fly  in  November  mallards  in  October; 

publif  ^,^L^il"^7i;- •-- -Jitten  ^"^r  ^'^^"^  ^h-  ^h« 
able  among  the  shelves  V  hi  /  .^  '"^"'■'"^tion  is  avail- 
Washington,  and  allS  fr  .i  c     ^!".'^'l««"'^»  institution  at 

and  reiifnou;  betf  onts  oe  ^ha^'nel?'"'^  ''^  ^"^'^"  ''^^ 
the  cabinets  of  the  U  S  K  n  I'L^'^'  "'^  "Hustrated  in 

of  Prof.  Dall  aJone  whose  "selr^h"!""'"-  '^""^  ''P'^''' 
seventeen  seasons  in  AKfrnSuV^T'  ^  l'^'"'"^  «f 
auspices,  afford  such  exnli.^;^  i  ''''^':^  ""^^''  <-'Overnment 
be  ignorant  oHt    cap?bfe  "«  ""«  "eed 

tions  as  ('overnment'^eports  and  "  nub    H  "'' "''^'^  ^'"^"^■ 
consigned  to  the  archive"  Jn  u         ^  \  '^''"-    ^""^  "dually 

hapsLhumedinext4;'eVf^,r'^^^^^^^^^ 
'mperfect  and  baser  effusL  c^ff  ?         reference,  while  the 
find   universal  currencv      Mr    «  "''''r''^'^  contributors 
"  History  of  Alaska  "rnmn^     Bancroft,  in  his  exliaustive 

pages,  hL  also  given  us  Til  Kf'""'"'^""''''^^^  «"^  ^4 

-n  unearth.  fro'm\Te"ea;  e^s  ^dtre^v^Vt^^^^^       ""^^^^ 
the  present  day.     The  vnli.m«^  ^  °^  ^"^  country  to 

and  authentic^repertorv  o    fnr"'^"'"^'  ^  ^"^^   ^^'"able 

and  economicalX\7isf anlTn^b'o^rS^^       "t^'^^ 
sufficient  to  demonstntP  nn,>  ""ard,  all  of  which  are 

encountered  inTheainc'u,L'l''T  '^'^'  '^'  ^'^^"^^y  to  be 
not  a  climatic  one  bKth^'^'''''''r""*  "^  Alaska,  is 

and  mountainourcia  ;       IVl^at';:,  tir^'T^'i^-^"^^'^^ 
salubrious  and  accessibk    renderii/Zh?       ''^!^''  ''  "'««' 
comparativelv  small  and  Vemof !  7r  ^    ^  agricultural  areas 
noi  be  conjectured    hTttleT^^nff""  '^'^  ^'^^''     ^'  ^an 
for  generations,  except  fc^^th^v! '"',"'"• '  ^'"  ^«  ^^''"'''^We 
which  may  possibly  a?Le  fro "  th7f ''?""'*  '^'^'•■''  ^^'^«'"<I 
n>ines.      Ncltw,thst^andb\/Te    lAbSl"'^     '^'T'y  ''' 
modicum  is  relatively  but  little  \    t  f\      ''"''    cultivable 
and  importance  than  woul  1  h^'J...      ''^  !""!  «^-^'^^^'"  ^^^ent 
to  appreciate  the  mLnit  ie  of  t  T'?''^^>'  '^""'^  ^h«  fail 
and  it  must  ever  be  K  r  le  i,i  m  n    'th.^'n''"''^  "^  ^  ^''"'^^ 
greater  than  that  of  thr.  r  p^  ^i  /r  !  ^*'^ '''''""^  "^  ^'^^l^a  is 

indeed  must  be  tha   pU,t    f  e^   th  . .'       "  "'^'"'^  ^^"^  '^"«^ 
an,t  cM^„>c-:_-   '■".«'^  P'«n- <"  earth,  .SO  mairnifir*.n^  in  J. 

•  -^.P.«»..cs,  wnicn  does  not  contain  the  vah^e  inher^ni^ 


48 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


of  $7,500,000,  the  equivalent  of  the  "Seward  Purchase." 
What  real  or  tangible  foundation  is  there  for  the  impression 
that  it  can  not  decently  support  more  than  a  handful  of 
population,  when  other  countries,  which  resemble  it  in 
climate  and  character,  support  large  numbers  ?  The  con- 
tributory causes  of  a  false  impression  have  already  been 
hinted  at  in  the  preface  of  this  volume,  and  will  presently 
be  made  more  clearly  to  appear. 

In  the  latter  years,  with  the  discovery  of  the   fertility  of 
our   illimitable  prairies  and   their  boundless   capacity  for 
grain,  men's  ideas  of  farm  dimensions  expanded  in  propor- 
tion, until  an  area  of  less  than    10,000  acres  came  to  be 
regarded  as  small.     But  the  era  of  bonanza  farms  has  now 
passed  away ;  the  great  wheat  fields  are  being  subdivided  ; 
mixed  industries  are  being  introduced,  and  with  constantly 
diminishing  areas  it  will  be  possible  presently  to  conceive 
of  a  farm  no  larger  than  those  they  have   in  Scotland  or 
New  England  ;  and  a  country  may  be  considered  agricul- 
tural that  is  not  wholly  an  alluvial  level  destitute  of  trees  and 
stones.     Nay,  it  may  even  come  within  the  grasp  of  thought 
to  imagine  acres  tucked  away  in  the  folds  of  the  Alaska 
mountains  or  spread  out  like  blankets  upon  the  waste  ter- 
races o&the  upper  Yukon.     No  lands  were  ever  more  fruit- 
ful than   the   hill   counties  of   Judea,   where    the    desert 
encroached  very  nearly  upon   the  fertile  tracts,  and  there 
are  few  countries  where  the  climatic  conditions  are  better 
adapted  to  diversified  crops  than  the  mountainous  seaboard 
of  Alaska.     With  regard  to  its  local  or  indigenous  products, 
let  me  recite  the  testimony  of  Captain  Beardslee,  of  the  U. 
S.  Navy,  given  in  1879,  soon  after  his  arrival  on  the  station, 
to  wit  :  "  We  have  been  here  three  months,  and  during  that 
period  have  been  plentifully  supplied  with  a  variety  of  good 
vegetables,  among  which  have  been  radishes,  lettuce,  car- 
rots,  onions,  cauliflower,  cabbage,  peas,  turnips  and  pota- 
toes, and  have  a  prospect  during  the  coming  month  of  beets, 
parsnips  and  celery,  all  of  which  look  well  in  the  gardens. 
The  cauliflower  and  cabbage  are  as  good  as  I  ever  ate  ;  the 
potatoes  are  just  coming  on,  and  are  not  quite  ripe  yet.     I 
had  this  day  (Sept.  17th)  at  my  dinner,  a  potato  grown  here 
which  was  seven  inches  long,  three  inches  thick,  and  weighed 
one  pound  five  ounces,  and  it  was  one  of  many  I  have  seen 
which  would  average  from  one-half  to  three-quarters  of  a 
pound  in  weight.     Its  flavor  was  good,  and   I   shall,  as  do 
all  other   people   here,  depend    upon   this   market  for  my 
wmter's  supply.     There   are  many  small   gardens   which 
return  crops,  as  in  all  other  countries,  in  proportion  to  the 


ECONOMICALLY  CONSIDERED. 

D?eMv"o/.''^l,'*'P'''>''''"  ""i^  cultivation.    I  have  seen 

been  under  annual  cuItTva'io'n  f";  some  'y!^.    l^^e  fat 
and  grow  fat,  when  we  thought  to  have  had  short  commons^' 

raised  on  the  coast,  bu^up  the  Stfckeen  R  v<^r '''  T'^^^J 
and  fifty  miles  bark  in  fil   .  f  ^"^'^^en  River,  one  hundred 

?d:=Bft?Si^-^=-^ 

for  it.  and  indigenous  plants  crowH.h  '^  "  ""^  '^^^ 

If  you  fence  a  o-arTn  SI  crowd  the  economic  products, 
from  V  ew  Ui.  ^.e^^nn'  ^  S-^^^^-plot,  the  fence  disappears 
iiuin  view  tnt    second  year  amona  th«  ovpro-mmfk,      -ru 

reekinrsS)lus  and  ^y  f  °^  ^^^  f^^'"  the 

suffiSt      W^  I  h  "^  ""''m '^'"8^ '^'■^^^  «f  '^^^^  abundantly 

ni-h  the'^aJive   rnit  SJ^  *^  At"  bfrrl"'  ''"V"^'^"'^'''  f"^" 
. ,  ,.  <..»..«u«  wiui  cnoicest  appies,  pears, 


so 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA, 


plums,  peaches,  grapes,  cherries,  etc.  One  curious  feature 
of  Alaska  vegetation  is  that  nearly  every  flower  is  succeeded 
by  a  berry,  in  the  same  latitude  of  Labrador  on  the 
Atlantic  side,  the  only  solitary  fruit  is  a  little  yellow  berry 
locally  known  as  -  baked  apple,"  which  grows  among  the 
grass  and  lichens  ;  and  spruce  sticks,  no  more  than  eight 
inches  in  diameter,  illustrate  the  best  forest  growth  VVhv 
don  t  the  Canadian  Government  remove  its  two  thousand 
pinched  and  starving  population  from  Labrador  to  British 
Columbia  at  the  public  expense  ?  They  would  earn  their 
transportation  in  a  year. 

As  stock  raising  is  the  remunerative  complement  of  every 
well  constituted  farm,  it  could  be  prosecuted  by  the  Alas- 
kan granger  v/ith  marked  advantage.   Certainly  the  climate 
is  vastly  more  propitious  than  in  Northern  Minnesota  and 
Dakota    where   the  grazing  of   fine    sheep   and  the  best 
blooded  cattle  is  now  prosecuted  with  signal  profit      Like 
the  bonanza  wheat  fields  of  the  Northwest,  so  the  illimitable 
cattle  ranges  of  the  further  west  are  being  sub-divided 
Diversity  of  industry  has  become  a  necessity  and  a  watch-' 
word.     Gradually  the  wheat  fields  and  the  cattle  ranges 
are  over-lapping  and  dove-tailing  into  each  other.     Very 
rapidly  the  farmer  of  the  West  is  driving  the  desert  before 
nim.     Ihe  developments  of  each  succeeding  year  make  it 
more  and  more  obvious  that  the  encroachment  of  the  home- 
steader upon  the  grazing  lands  can  not  be  checked.     The 
nenver  Iribune  says  :— "  Men  have  stood  in  line  a  hundred 
deep  at  the  Land  Offices  waiting  their  turns  to  enter  land 
upon  which  as  little  rain  falls  as  in  the    .lost  arid  spot  east 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains.     If  this  move  can  be  made  to 
pay  them  It  simply  means  that  all  the  plains  will  be  home- 
steaded  within  a  few  years.     It  means  that  the  large  herds 
wil  disappear  and  that  the  lands  will  be  fenced  by  their 
rea  owners.     In  short,  it  forebodes  another  change  in  the 
evolution  of  the  arid  cattle-grazing  business  greater  than 
any  that  has  gone  before." 

Finally  when  all  the  land  is  homesteaded,  men  will  look 
to  Alaska.  And  why  not  ?  Says  Bancroft :— "  Grasses 
thrive  almost  everywhere  on  the  low-lands.  Kodiak  is  a 
good  grazing  country,  capable  of  sustaining  large  droves  of 
cattle.  On  the  Aleutian  Islands  trees  do  not  grow  but  the 
grasses  are  luxuriant."  Lieutenant  Schwatka  in  his  report  of 
the  interior,  speaks  enthusiastically  of  the  upland  meadows 
and  the  grass-grown  bluffs.  Capt.  Beardslee  says  :— "  I  am 
not  sufficiently  posted  in  the  mysteries  of  a  granger's  pro- 
fession to  undertake  to  speak  very  positively  as  to  the  num- 


ECONOMICALL  Y  CONSIDERED. 


woull^uptr^burS^^^^^^^  --"t  of  land' 

port    some  stock    I   win   I?  "  '^"'^  ^T  ^^^'^^  ^'"  ^up- 
While  the  army  was  h!e  T         P.'T,^>^  ^^'^^^^     *     *     * 
stock  ranch^%here  has  bi'ri'^l  ^'''"^  ^^^  "^^^  as  a 
head  of  cattle,  over  one  h„„?"  h^?'  ^"  ''  ^^  "^^"X  as  sixty 
hundred  of  hogs     aH  of  wh    ^^^""^  -"^'".'P'  ^"^  ^^e''  three 
a  much  greatef  nor?  on  orth".   ''^'"?''^  ''^'J''  °^"  ^^^^  ^^^ 
done  in  any  sta^te  north  of  A.^nf  '"'""  '^^  ^°"'^  ^ave 
difficulty  m  getting  XdhivT^T'  ^".'^  '^^'"^  ^^«  "« 
are  the   Katlianskv  rnd    M^"        "^^  ''f  ""''^^  "^''^^  of  here 
which,  having  been^fantedwTh':'''''^.^  ^^^^  ""^  P'^'"«' 
by  a  settler  named  Sefurnsh.r'^K^  '°"^'  y^^''^  ^S« 
age  of  sixty  tons  of  Sw^  '''"  'u°T  ^"  ^^^'•- 

of  July,  when  the  temDeratn^;  dunngthe  heated  spell 

and  this  year  thoseVho  'rf.>??'?  "Pu'"^°  '^^  "'"^ties  ; 
timate  that  there  was  at  least  on',  ^h'  'h''!.°^"  ^"PP^^  ««' 
immediate  vicinity  of  Sitk.fh  *'u"'^''^'^  *°"«-     ^^  the 

arable  land,  much  of  wl^ch  I  '  """  'n ''"  '^°"^^"^  ^^"-^s  ^^ 
with  white  clover  And  on  .h"""  ""^^  ^'"^''^^  ^"^  ^^"^ered 
foot-hills  there  are  nt?!        ^^^  summits  of  some  of  the 

where  innlab^  Seer  obta^  "''5  ""'  ^^^^^^^' 

and  mountain  sheep  wouWthdv-'^'  '"^  ^^^'^^  ^^^^^ 

witib^aS^rs^db^d  L'^  -'^-h  have  come 

trate  the  coast  regbn  iust  fLr  K?'^r^''°"-     ^hey  illus- 
erland  ;  and  Switzerland   A  ^'^'^'^  P'^^^s  illustrate  Switz- 

agricultural      Whh™ard^  "^^  ^^"^tly 

Captain  Wm.  H  Dall  of  f  h.  n  '^'.^^i^'^o"  River  country, 
says,  in  his  report  made  to  th.r""'^  ■^'•^'"^  ^^°^«'  Purvey 
in  1867  '.~^^hmoT^t,^^,^'''^:^TT^'''^  Agriculture 
some  thirty  speT^es^are  knrTwn  .  '''''"^^  '  g'-asses.  of  which 
tory,  is  the  wen-l^nou  ?  Ken^"  l^  ?/''  '"  '^^  ^"kon  terri- 
luxuriantlyasfarnonhasK^'X^'"^^  grass,  which  grows 
Point  Barrow.  ^otzebue  Sound,  and  perhaps  to 

of  Kotzebue  Sound  Tdl-roi  M"^"^"'  ^^^  '^^itude 
Sound  with  a  truly  surn/isiwT.  °"  '^^  "^^^'^  ^^  Norton 
favorable  locahties  fou*^^  o  "ien  "fiT?'  T""^^"^  '"  ^^^^ 
peraging  at  least  three  Manv  oth.r  ''  '"  ^^'^^^^  ^"^ 
in  the  list  of  useful  nl.nfV^  7  g^^^^t%  enumerated 
tribute  largely  "o  the  whole  K^  abundantly,  and  con- 
species  oi^ElZsiJ^C'l^^^^^^'^\  herbage.  Two 
aspect  of  grain-fields  mafnrln  ^   traveler  with   the 

the  field-mice  L  nnl"!!!"!:'"^^  ^  perceptible  kernel  which 


5« 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


i 


"  The  grasses  are  woven  into  mats,  dishes,  articles  of 
clothing  for  summer  use,  such  as  socks,  mittens,  and  a  sort 
of  hats,  by  all  the  Indians,  and  more  especially  by  the 
Esquimaux. 

"  In  winter  the  dry  grasses,  collected  in  the  summer  for 
the  purpose,  and  neatly  tied  in  bunches,  are  shaped  to  cor- 
respond with  the  foot,  and  placed  between  the  foot  and  the 
seal-skin  sole  of  the  winter  boots  worn  in  that  country. 
There  they  serve  as  a  non-conductor,  keeping  the  foot  dry 
and  warm,  and  protecting  it  from  contusion. 

"  Grain  has  never  been  sown  on  a  large  scale  in  the  Yukon 
territory.  Barley,  I  was  informed,  had  once  or  twice  been 
tried  at  Fort  Yukon,  in  small  patches,  and  the  grain  had 
matured,  though  the  straw  was  very  short.  The  experi- 
ments were  never  carried  any  further,  however,  the  traders 
being  obliged  to  devote  all  their  energies  to  the  collection 
of  furs." 

Respecting  the  Aleutian  islands,  he  states  that  '*  The  climate 
is  better  adapted  for  haying  than  that  of  the  coast  of 
Oregon.  The  cattle  were  remarkably  fat,  and  the  beef  very 
tenuer  and  delicate  ;  rarely  surpassed  by  any  well-fed  stock. 
Milk  was  abundant.  The  good  and  available  arable  land 
lies  chiefly  near  the  coast,  formed  by  the  meeting  and 
mingling  of  the  detritus  from  mountain  and  valley  with  the 
sea  sand,  which  forme*'  a  remarkably  rich  and  genial  soil, 
well  suited  for  garden  and  root-crop  culture.  It  occurs  to 
us  that  nany  choice  sunny  hillsides  here  would  produce 
good  crops  under  the  thrifty  hand  of  enterprise.  They  are 
already  cleared  for  the  plow.  Where  grain-like  grasses 
grow  and  mature  well,  it  seems  fair  to  infer  that  oats  and 
barley  would  thrive,  provided  they  were  fall-sown,  like  the 
native  grasses.  This  is  abundantly  verified  by  reference  to 
the  collections.  Several  of  these  grasses  had  already 
(September)  matured  and  cast  their  seed  before  we  arrived, 
showing  sufficient  length  of  season.  Indeed  no  grain  will 
yield  more  than  half  a  crop  of  poor  quality  (on  the  Pacific 
slope),  when  spring-sown,  whether  north  or  south. 

"  The  Russians  affirm,  with  confirmation  by  later  visitors, 
that  potatoes  are  cultivated  in  almost  every  Aleutian  village  ; 
and  Veniaminof  states  that  at  the  village  in  Isanotsky 
Strait  they  have  raised  them  and  preserved  the  seed  for 
planting  since  the  begining  of  this  century. 

"  Wild  pease  grow  in  great  luxuriance  near  Unalaska  Bay, 
and  as  far  north  as  latitude  sixty-four  degrees." 

There  is  no  trouble  about  wintering  cattle  and  sheep 
in   Alaska.     Old   traders   have   declared   to   me  that  the 


ECONOMICALL  V  CONSIDERED. 


53 

musk-ox  exists  in  considerable  numbers  m  the  northern 
Hne  J\T'T^'  especially  near  the  British  boundary 
!k  \.  ,  ^^^.  "^^^^^  ''^^^  °^  which,  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  Mackenzie  River,  Northwest  Territory,  they  a  e  qui^e 
numerous;  and  although  some  natural ist^  strenuously  in! 
sist  that  It  does  not,  and  never  did,  exist  in  Alaska,  there 
seems  no  reason  why  the  Rocky  Mountain  range  shouW 
constitute  an  insuperable  obstacle  to  their  transit     The  e 

StaterN'.^"'  I'P^r^"^  °^  ^^^  "^"^1^-°-  i"  the  United 
fn     h     S    ?"^'  ■  ^^'"""''    ^"   ^^    which   were   obtained 

?om  AuS.'"'''  ^^^'^""T'^^  ^"'  'here  are  none 
theof^lr  V  5°  '•'^'  ^°^"y  P''^"^  i«  wanting.  On 
Irticle  nrint^r^  7.'  'J^^  '"  Lieutenant  Schwatka's 
article    printed   m   the   Century    Matrazine  in    i88?    that 

he  range  of  the  musk-ox  isfrom  "iatUude    6o   d;g  ees 

vJ^^^f^''^^^'   1^"^    ^'^^    '^^    R°^ky     Mountain^  di! 
vide,  westward,  almost  to  the  Behring  Sea.     The  native 
mountain  sheep  and  goats  of  Alaska  weather  through  the 
nclement  winters  without  sheds  or  cotes,  or  any  shelfer  but 
the  dense  undergrowth  which  chokes  eve^y  gully  and  ravine 
Domestic  utensils  and  ornaments  are  made  by  the  na^es 
from  he  horns  of  each,  and  the  latter  animals  are  in  such 
abundance  as  to  furnish  wool  for  quite  an  extensive  manu- 
facture of  blankets  and  clothing.     Wool-growing  should  bo- 
come  an  important  industry  in  Alaska,  as  it  is  in  Oregon  • 
and  better,  for  the  atmosphere  there  is  not  so  damp.     Las 
nrnT.^f''"^'"'^'"°i*^""'y^^'-^^o^ded    with   4-'8,ooo 
pounds  of  wool  was  made  up  at  Portland  for  Philadelphia 
and  this  was  only  a  fraction  of  the  product  of  the  State    So 

^oa't'^tiatt^h^T  '^^i'  '^^^^  "•  'h«  ^'-^^^  Mountain 
fwentt  doltc  T^'  homespun  Chilkoot  blanket  fetches 
twenty  dollars.  There  is  not  the  shadow  of  a  doubt  that 
these  anima  s  can  be  easily  domesticated,  and  the  wool 
product  made  immensely  profitable.  The  ^ery  fact  of  the^ 
t^h.t  rh?'' °^  ^°'"''°"  ^y/*^^  ^''^  S^^ts  and  sheep  show 
^ultlt  ''  ?.  P"'/'°"  °/  ^"^^'■•^^  "^^'•^  favorable  for  ovl 
culture  than  the  ndges  of  Alaska,  while  the  numerous  herds 

Yukon  ?:;r7°''';^'"'  ^Tl^  ^^^>'  "P  «"  'he  plateau  of  the 
Yukon,  testify  with  equal  favor  of  the  mooJs  and  moss- 

stsVuLifstrkir  "^'"  ^"^^^^^^  °"^  ^'-  ^^  -^-'^ 

poultry-yard  and  hog-pen.  Indeed,  butter  eggs,  be7nork 
and  poultry  should  be  always  staples.     A  pofk-packing^  es 

_^  ..^      —       - 


an  iudispensabie  institution  of 


54 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


the  coast,  if  one  could  only  guarantee  the  flavor— as  the 
hogs  feed  greedily  on  the  sea-castings,  growing  enormously 
fat.  SiU;  culture  might  be  prosecuted,  and  also  the  culture 
of  sugar  beets.  Alaska  ought  to  manufacture  her  own 
sugar.  A  current  newspaper  paragraph  states  that  the  fac- 
tory at  Alvarado,  California,  made  1250  tons  of  refined 
beet  sugar  last  season.  The  Alvarado  factory  has  been  in 
operation  six  years,  and  its  profits  are  computed  at  *io4,. 
000  on  an  investment  of  $125,000.  The  growers  get  «4.5o 
a  ton  for  beets,  and  the  yield  is  said  to  average  twenty  tons 
to  the  acre.  The  factory  pays  out  about  |qo,ooo  a  year  for 
beets. 

Here  are  some  Sitka  market  prices  for  the  summer  of 
1885  :  Venison  5  and  10  cents  per  pound  ;  a  six  pound  salmon 
10  cents  ;  grouse,  per  pair,  50  cents  ;  sugar  i3  cents  ;  me- 
dium butter  75  cents  tiie  roll  of  less  than  two  pounds  ; 
eggs  50  cents  per  dozen  ;  a  cabbage-head  25  cents  ;  new 
potatoes  one  dollar  per  bushel.  Some  goats  are  kept  for 
milk.  There  is  not  only  good  land  all  along  the  coast,  but 
plenty  of  it  fit  f  >r  cultivation  of  all  the  produce  that  there 
is  likely  to  be  a  .narket  for  during  many  years  to  come.  The 
present  population  of  Southwestern  Alaska,  according  to 
the  report  of  Gov.  Swineford,  is,  whites,  1,900  ;  natives, 
7,000.  For  the  whole  Territory  the  most  reliable  estimate 
is  30,000. 

The  timber  forests  of  Alaska  are  a  standing  testimony  to 
the  value  of  the  "Seward  Purchase,"  which  even  the 
most  obstreperous  objectors  could  not  deny.  The  visible 
wealth  of  Alaska  lies  in  her  forests.  Alaska  is  the  great 
timber  reserve  of  the  continent.  Trees  of  such  size  and 
commercial  value  exist  nowhere  else  on  the  globe  in  such 
numbers  and  extensive  areas  of  growth.  There  is  a  supply 
here  of  five  thousand  seven  hundred  million  feet  at  a  low 
estimate,  a  very  large  part  of  which  is  at  once  accessible 
for  shipment,  as  saw-mills  and  vessels  can  lie  right  along- 
side the  timber  at  tide-water,  all  the  way  up  the  coast  as 
far  as  it  extends.  Saw-mills  at  two  or  more  prominent 
points  on  the  coast  ought  to  pay  well,  for  lumber  is  very  high. 
If  prices  were  less,  the  Indians  alone  would  purchase  large 
quantities.  The  first  sawmill  ever  set  up  in  South  America 
was  by  a  citizen  of  the  Unitrd  States,  who  went  to  Ancud, 
Chili,  in  1828,  and  it  laid  the  foundation  of  his  great  wealth, 
accumulated  there.  The  example  might  be  followed  here. 
We  are  approaching  a  time  when  the  resources  of  the 
Union  will  be  overtaxed,  and  timber  will  be  scarce;  but 
when  all  the  states  are  drained  of  their  product,  there  will 


ECONOMICALL  Y  CONSIDERED.  55 

adjacent  main-land  are  covered  with  it  •  ^reat  areal  of  Ih! 
interior  plateau,  which  reaches  to  the  've^e  of   he  Arctic 
sea,  are  untracked  wildernesses  of  spruce.     On"y  when  peo- 
ple who  are  now  strangers  to  the  land  and  listeners  "o  the 
s  ory  come  to  see  the  magnitude  of  these  forests  aVd    he 
s  upendous  mdividuality  of  their  giant  trees    will  the v  he 
able  to  realize  the  truth  of  what  is  told  them    '/he  lumber 
men  of  the  old  states,  whose  lives  have   been  pa  sedTn 
loggnig  camps,  would  stand  appalled  at  the  majesty  of  the 
t^r  is'nL'Te?t  l^t  T''  hea'^enward.  and  wh'ot'dbme? 
of  which  ?hf     i  ^^^  ^^T'  °/  ^^^  f^'"""^  fed  cedars,  out 
ot  which  the  Indians  make  the  r  dug-out  canoes  somp  of 
them  sixty  feet  in  length  with  eight  fe^et  beam "      '    ^'  °^ 
Alongside  of  some  logs  which  one  finds  prone  the  choicest 
cull  of  the  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota  drivL,Tould  look  lik' 
theV^"'^     ^^«'de  «t^"ding  trees,  the  tal  esrrampike   of 
the  Maine  forests  resemble  saplings.     Here  the  alders  Jrow 
to  a  diameter  of  sixteen  inches,  and  an  ordinary  maplcTal 
^?owth      r"/??''  'P'"-     ^^""^"^^-^  character^  all  th. 

Kscatlfed    ^'kp^^^^^  gigantic,  or  the  forests 

all  unscathed.     The  bulk  of  the  forest  trees  are  of  ordinarv 

tnroughout  at    neighborly   intervals,   occupyinff  the  low 
lands  between  the  shoulders  of  the  mountai.  s^  but  mZ' 
ofthe  angular  hll-sides  along  the  coast  faiybristewi^h 
the  skeletons  of  dead  spruces,  which  have  died  from  del  th 

S  aT/^ tfTfromT^  '^'  ^°^'^^'  '""^  ^"^^'-^  ^"-''hi  e 
arawing  lite  from  their  decaying  remains     As  in  all  knn«,« 

iTeV'lnr'^lf  'y '"^"'  «'^^  ^-^  h-e  run  thro  g'vTst 
ers  an  1  f  r7  '^''"''''  ''^'"'"^^  ^'^^  carelessness  0I  hun  - 
ers  and  trappers,  causing  conflagrations  whose  smnkp 
obscures  the  sun  for  months  together     It  is  sld  ?o  coiuet 

a'  f otSltf"'^^-^"  ^  ^^''^r  «f  the  forets'^f^riaTa- 
smokes  seen  in  "L  V'f  T''  ^  ^"""'  ^^^^  ^^e  only 
frihTc  I,  ■  I  }^^  ^'^t''"'  ^'^^  were  th-  signals  of  the 
ribes  who  wished  to  communicate  with  each  other  sorne 
or  he  purpose  of  barter,  some  to  intimate  the  n  e  ence  of 
mtruders  ;  some  to  indicate  the  direction  to  be  taken  ^a 
point  of  rendezvous.     Sometimes    the   signal   was  a   hi^ 

tTr^^adiatnTsom^  t  ''"  ^^L"' ''  ^^^'^  ^'"^  --  ^- ^ 

ttn^ad'aS'to^  '^^J^l!^J^^  -'^  many  varia- 

--   —   -".•--.., iMiiuu  lu  uc  conveyed.     These 


'  .•?<^«f!HI|MaitMMI 


56  QUE  NEW  ALASKA. 

Indian  signals  were  almost  as  perfect  as  the  crude  symbols 
of  our  army  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  before  they  were 
formulated  into  a  fixed  code. 

Commercially  considered,  the  trees  of  Alaska  rank  as  fol- 
lows :    Yellow  cedar,  spruce,  hemlock,  alder  and  a  species 
of  fir  or  black  pine.     The  Douglas  pine,  which  is  so  abund- 
ant in  British  Columbia  and  possesses  the  chief  commer- 
cial value  there,   is   replaced   in   great   nart  in  Southern 
Alaska  "by  the  white  cedar,  a  splendid  finishing  wood,  out 
of  which  the  Indians  carve  their  totem  poles  or  heraldic 
columns.     The  red  cedar  grows  in  special  abundance  on 
the  lower  coasts,  and  extends  inland  to  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains.    It  is  in  great  demand  because  of  itc  durability.     Of 
it  the  Indians  make  their  canoes,  roofing  their  houses  v.'ith 
the  bark  and  weaving  the  fiber  into  blankets.     The  cypress 
or  yellow  cedar  is  round  in  southern  Alaska.     It  is  suscepti- 
ble of  taking  a  very  fine  polish,  and  considered  valuable  for 
boat-building  and  finishing  purposes.     It  sells  for  $80  per 
thousand  \u  San  Francisco.     It  possesses  a  delightful  odor, 
which  like  camphor  wood  it  retains  for  a  long  time  ;  and, 
manufactured  into  boxes  and  chests,  is  very  valuable  for 
packing  furs  and  other  goods,  as  it  is  said  to  be  a  moth 
preventive.    It  is  also  extremely  tough,  and  proof  against 
the  teredo  sea-worm,  and  for  this  reason  is  in  demand  for 
piling  and  all  submarine  purposes,     Samuel's  West  Shore 
Magazine  supplies  the  following  list  of  the  principal  trees  of 
British  Columbia,  nearly  all  of  which  I  believe  are  common 
to  some  portion  of  Alaska,  but  not  all  of  equal  perfection  in 
the  higher  latitude :  — 

"  Juniper,  or  pencil  cedar,  found  on  the  east  coast  of 
Vancouver  Island,  and  on  the  shores  of  lakes  in  the  inte- 
rior. The  Weymouth,  or  white  pine,  {Finns  strobus)  found 
on  the  Lower  Fraser,  where  it  attains  great  size  and  beauty. 
The  balsam  pine  attains  a  vigorous  growth,  but  is  of  little 
value  as  timber.  Yellow  pine,  {Finns  ponderosa)  flourishes 
in  the  interior.  The  wood  is  close-grained  and  durable, 
though  very  heavy.  Scotch  fir,  {Finns  Bankskiana)  is 
found  in  the  interior  ;  also  on  Vancouver  Island,  though  of 
a  smaller  growth.  Throughout  the  lower  coast  the  hem- 
lock, {Abies  sitkensis)  grows  to  large  proportions,  its  bark 
being  exceedingly  valuable  for  tanning  purposes.  The 
western  larch,  {Larix  occidentalis)  grows  to  immense  size  in 
the  bottoms  along  the  international  line.  The  yew,  ( Taxus 
hrevi-folia)  is  found  on  the  coast  and  as  far  up  the  Fraser 
as  Yale.  It  does  not  attain  the  size  of  English  yew.  The 
natives  utilise  it    for    bows.     Oak,  {Q  Garryana)  grows 


ECONOMICALL  Y  CONSIDERED.  57 

abounds  along  the  water  courses  near  the  coast  an/Sjl 

the  nnnpr  V„l.  ''^  "^^'^^"^V^       ^  "^    COttOHWOOd    IS  found  DH 

merchantable  woods  which  are  available  :/„ew  uses  and 
urcoTmerclllv  -^^^e  substituted  for  ot'  rnearTyVs  d 
«f  ,.H"  fu     '^^    '  ^^  '"   '  convinced  of  <he  Ereat  valuf 

FiSa    tZ.-        <?  t  '"".^"^y    y^^'^   '^<^  tree-mosses  of 

and  ufhi^  f?°        ,  Jhe  supply  ,s  practically  inexhaustible 

^l:?g"reat'larr'^"°"  ^°  '^^  ^°^^'  ''  -' ^  ^«  ^^t»>-d' 

«,  JJl^/"'P/"^^['''''^  ^"""8:le  of  the  Alaskan  forest  with  its 
windfalls  of  timber  and  profusion  of  wild  fruit  and  succn 
ent  mosses,  constitutes  an  incomparable  nurserv  and  nro' 
tection  for  its  fauna,  while  the  open  ridges  a^veThe  dmb?; 
line  are  no  less  secure  from  man's  intrusion  by  the  neural 
obstacles  interposed.    Assuredly,  ther^  is  no  nlarp  nn  tvf 

tZXZ''''^.  1^  ^""T^-  -ioy  su'ch%:r°fe^cUmm°u4 
l.m»  Tc  ^'  remains  by  its  natural  gifts  the  only  ^reat 
game  and  fur  preserve  left  in  the  western  word  and  stands 
ready  and  wide  open  for  the  operations  of  °nrep1S  hunters 
and  trappers  at  the  verv  time  wh^n  oti,.r  .J":::?  _.  ""*^." 


|.(,'i»"fWllHpi J 


58 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


m 


•Mil! 

J 11  : 

Iw: ' 

ilH  1 

iifll'  ' 

^'1 

have  been  drained,  and  denizens  of  cold  countries  are  look- 
ing about  them  for  substitutes  for  buffalo  robes  and  the 
more  costly  furs  which  have  now  at  last  become  priceless  or 
extinct.  American  furs  are  becoming  scarcer  every  year  as 
civilization  pushes  into  the  wilds.  Oregon,  which  within 
the  memory  of  men  not  old,  was  one  of  the  finest  of  hunting 
grounds,  has  practically  ceased  to  yield  any  thing  of  the 
kind.  Washington  Territory  is  only  productive  in  its  wilder 
portions,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  British  Columbia. 
Alaska,  however,  remains  almost  intact,  and  not  only  the 
lucrative  seal  isles  of  Prybilov,  but  all  the  fastnesses  of  the 
coast  range,  the  "  barren  groutjds  "  of  the  great  plateau,  and 
the  banks  of  the  great  rivers  flowing  into  the  Arctic  Ocean, 
still  make  it  worth  the  absorbing  attention  of  the  fur  trader, 
and  the  trapper.  The  stock  of  good  merchantable  fur  is 
neither  abundant  nor  cheap  in  Alaska  ;  but  squirrel  robes 
containing  six  or  seven  dozen  skins  neatly  sewed  together 
may  often  be  bought  cheap  at  the  Indian  "  ranches."  They 
make  excellent  cloak  and  coat  lining.s.  A  red  fox  skin 
costs  two  dollars  ;  mountain  goat  fifty  cents;  black  bear 
from  ten  to  twenty-five  dollars  unmounted.  Hair  and  fur 
seals  range  in  price,  undressed  from  three  to  ten  dollars ; 
sea  otter  from  ninety  to  two-hundred  dollars — the  most 
expensive  of  all  American  fur  and  the  most  desirable. 
Land  otter  is  very  pretty,  and  at  one  of  the  Sitka  stores  a 
shoulder  cape  and  muff  made  up  in  San  Francisco  wasoffered 
at  twenty-fi  ve  dollars.  The  Russian  occupation,  which  was 
founded  on  tne  fur  trade  and  enriched  itself  for  a  century 
on  its  profits,  withdrew  from  the  field  before  the  lead  was 
half  -vorked  out,  nay,  scarcely  opened  !  The  Hudson  Bay 
Company  was  long  ago  attracted  to  the  country  by  its 
inducements,  and  attempted  to  secure  a  foothold  in  it  by 
establishing  trading  posts  on  the  upper  Yukon  as  far  back 
as  1850,  crossing  the  Rocky  mountain  divide  from  the  head 
waters  of  the  Mackenzie;  but  they  were  soon  driven  out  by 
the  Chilkoot  Indians,  the  most  energetic  and  business-like 
of  the  coa.st  tribes,  v/ho  had  been  for  generations  the  self- 
constituted  middle-men  between  the  seaboard  and  the  in- 
terior ;  and  the  interior  of  Alaska  has  since  remained  an 
unoccupied  field  for  the  pui  juit  of  an  industry,  which  for  a 
century  enriched  a  masterful  corporation  and  made  it  almost 
a  sovereign  power.  If  the  brave  spirits  who  started  the 
Northwpst  Fur  Company  of  years  ago,  and  whose  survivors 
are  now  few  and  hoary,  could  renew  their  youth  and  energy, 
they  would  ask  no  better  opportunity  for  business  than 
the  one  now  so  opportunely  presented,  with  transportation 


HI 


ECONOMICALLY  CONSIDERED, 


59 

before.  It  is  true  that^n  7  -^  • "  "^""^  ^^^"^  offered 
kno'vn  as  the  North^v^st  Fu"  r  "  JP"'^'"^  company-now 
paratively  short  time  estahilh^^P^"^-^^^  ^"'^h'"  ^  co«»- 
Sitka,  Wrangel  Tnd  S  "^  trading  posts  at  Chilkat, 
methods  are^business  likl  i""'"*'  '^°"S^  *^-«  ^"^^t ;  its 
liberal ;  but  it  wi  1  take  ^n  PT^^^-^^sive,  and   its  policy 

the  field  ;    and  so      reoeat  It""^  °^  ^^i'''  '°  ^""^  ^^^^PX 
pied.     The  succ^Ls  oTthe'Hud'son^^^^^  T'^' 

the  protracted  period  of  its  sov.r^?  ^f^  ^o^npany,  through 

the  resources  w£rci1rehfdTnTsfvl\'rhe"Al"l""V°' 
'ands  ;  and  inasmnrh  nc  ife  »     'cJ»eive  in  the  Alaskan  fur 

nually;  who  dTrfsay  thT  he^'s^far^d"?^^^^  ^"■ 

as  good  as  gold?     How  Ion/ hiJZ        ^^^^chase  "  ,s   not 
awake  to  rellize  the  truTh  ?  ^  ^  °"'  ^^^^^nment  will 

.  With  regard  to  the  mineral  resource.:  nf  xu.u  u 
nchress  is  rapidly  coming  to  view  with  fheil^f  "^^^'^ 
I  have  chosen  to  devote  a  sepa  're  chanter  tT  ,°P"''",'' 
pause  to  mention  that  the  total  out  put  of  "ini.  """'f '^ 
the  year  1885,  is  officially  placed  at  CioVoT^^'""'  ^°' 
»s  3'A  per-cent  on  the  nurchat  nri  '  ;  P's amount 
The  most  lucrative  and  best  kn^  ^  ^!  °^  *^^  territory, 
the  seal  "  fisherr-'Io  c^Med  thn.^^'J.'^'^^'^'y  °^  ^'^^ka.  is 
driven  upon  the  land  and  k^n^t!''  '^e  animals  are  usually 
For  the  exclu^^e  plr,:'    ^?^^^^^^^^  ^^ad  with  clubs^ 

100,000  in  number  oer  annum  flfA?^,'"^^!''  "°^  ^^  ^^^^eed 
Francisco,  pays  to^theaorr'n.^At'^^^°"^P«"y  «f  San 
$3i7,ooo/e?e?yyear     AenT"    '^'  stipulated  price  of 

willhave'paidanhefestTT^^^^^^^^^^^^  ^«^°'  '^ 

fishe   es    hey  may  be  ?errdl'V''  "-^  '^f  ^^^"^^  Commercial 

so abund^mt^^ryChereTh.^^^^ uT^% '''''"'^^b'^"  * -^ are 

from  a  native  allTe  fi^h  iLt  f^^    """^^  ^"^  '''"^  P^"^"'-^ 

banks,  cod-fish  banks,  and   ocl  od  b'^oUom'"  '''     "''*'"' 
vais  all  alonj?  the  romt   "^°P;^^d  bottoms,  occur  at  mter- 

estuaries  so  tliat  they  can  no  7"  ^^'"-  '^'  ""'^^^^  «"^'  ^'^al 
wide  and  as  deep  arthrnnl  r^'  '"  T''^'  '"^^"X  yards 

from  the  surFa'i^to  the  bottom     ^th"' ''' ^''*^  ^'«  ^^^^)    " 
candle-fish,  or  caplin-beaSl   fish  ^1?'''"'"^  ''^t°" 
long,  1  ke  smelts-llinp    Ha  k      I  "^^  ''*^^^"    '"^^hes 

windrows    a    ylrl  wfde    and'^'^"'  1'  ""'u^  ^""^^-^'^^  '" 
alive  and  kicking    eaThinr-      ''''''''    '"^'^^^    ^^^p,    all 
of  th«m      u«l"i:  -^J^!!'"^"™'"*?  ^'ave  stranding  a  ho,t 
'' """"*  ="^*'*"  "'  *"  "'e  estuaries  and  channels^ 


<»-«««n«SMMiWDMM[ 


do 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


lill^ 


All  the  inlets  abound  in  fish  of  a  hundred  known  and 
unknown  kindn,   good   for  food    and   good    for  oil    and 
fertilizers.     Whales  and  blackfish  are  plentiful  off  the  coast 
and   in  the  estuaries.    There  is  wealth  here  foi  all  who 
will  spread    tl.eir    nets  or  cast  the   hook.      Devastating 
storms  and  periodical  dearth  of  fish  do  not  make  the  fishing 
business  too  hazardous  to  undertake.     Starvation    never 
threatens.     Our  Cape  Anners  ant?  Gloucester  fishermen  who 
breast  the  hardships  of  the  Atlantic,  will  here  find  a  more 
congenial  climate  ;    spring  opening  with  fulsome   benefi- 
cence in  early  March  ;  fish  swarming  into  every   estuary 
and  congregating  on  every  outlying  bank  in  ample  season 
for  Lenten  market ;  herring,  cod  and  halibut  enough  to  sat- 
isfy an  eternity  of   Fridays.     There   labor  stands  already 
provided— men,  native  Indians  accustomed  for  many  gener- 
ations to  the   perils,  intricacies  and  abounding  munificence 
of  the  sea  coast ;  men,  intelligent  and  industrious,  waiting 
with  open  arms  to  welcome  any  enterprise  which  will  give 
them  congenial  and  profitable  employment :  men  of  dusky 
hue,  and  strong  sinews  to  breast  the  waves  and  haul  the 
icine  and  heave  the  ponderous  halibut  and  rock  cod  from 
their  seciuestcred  depths,  who  have  already,  of  their  own 
motion  and  energy,  established  canneries  and  oil  factories 
along  their  sea-girt  home  !     Here  on  this  boundless  Pacific 
coast,  where  Yankee  and  Kanuck  have  each  a  thou.sand 
Tuiles  of  scope,  no  questions  of  jurisdiction  or  marine  pre- 
rogatives need  arise  ;  whispers  oJ    iwards  and  claims  will 
be  lost  in  the  sounding  surf ;  dissensions  and  jealousy  will 
be  drowned  in  the  overwhelming  Rood  of  fortune  ;  and  no 
one  wil)  have  to  wait  on  the  flow  of  tide.     All  the  vessels 
of  the   coast-guard  will  bt   impressed  for  holiday  jaunts 
among  the  c  lustering  islands,  and  moods  and  tenses  of  men 
and  teniju'sty  will   remain  symbolically  "pacinc."     ''>hould 
the  attac'.ments  of  home  be  to^-  strong  for  the  sturdy  New 
Knglanders  to  cut  their  latch-strings  loose  alt«    -ther  and 
deter  tlum  from  migrating  for  permanent  estabi..-.nment  on 
new  truir.ing  grounds,  the  annihilation  of  tiine  and  distance 
\>y  modern  facilities  of  transcontinental   tnnsportation  will 
make  each  trip  and  periodical  sojourn  little  mere  than  an 
annual  holiday  excursion.     Compared  with  the  precarious 
venturer,  of  their  progenitors  who  flocked  to   the   North 
Atlantic  fishing  grounds  before  the  early  day«    of  rolonial 
settlement,  tlieir  new  departure  would  be  a  bagatelle— a 
mere  reflection  of  personal  hazard  and  commercial  risk. 

Out  in  Alaska  every  thing  which  ia  required  for  this  stu- 
pendous industry  grows  spontaneously—au  abundance  of 


BCONOMICALL  Y  CONSIDERED.  g 

profitably,  and  t^ine  for  iPf?  ^n^'  ^'^'^  ^'"^  evaporated 

refrigeratinTuses  in  rh.n   1         ^^' '"  ''^""^h  America,  for 

wooden  cr-S     r.I  f  k^   T?"'"''.  "■°"  "^es  inclosed  by 
steamers  tiTo'vvernortsa'^;    ,^°  '"»l"'"=l«''  «"  'en-knol^ 

pTser~-i,££^5x?-r,i;- 

trpM     r'nr>i»-.i      II        "'^^surably  cease  to  agifrava*  «  dis- 

appreciate  the  importanc^e  of  the^^    'm  '^^'"'  ^"'' 

so  very  like  our  own  ?„  ^    i  unoeveloped  resources, 

have  sLl'e^rTn  „;",„":;   ':tSt;l^  Already  .hey' 

ars.'er,\';  err'tenrsi'^a„l"""^r'""'' °^^ 
z:^h  A-r' s.Sr  ^^"'"=^  -- 

•  Chiefif  the  Hydshi  and  Shinipshcans 


•^ 


63 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


and  are  preferred  to  any  other  kind  of  labor.  On  the 
steamers  they  are  employed  almost  exclusively  for  rousta- 
bouts, and  are  paid  higher  wages  than  white  men,  because 
they  can  do  more  work  and  are  more  reliable  and  steady. 

What  a  blessed  word  of  encouragement  this  is  to  our 
home  philanthropists  !      In  this  very  department  of  fish- 
eries, the  authorities  have  taken  advanced  steps  to  attract 
that   class  of  immigrants  which,  if  the   movement   should 
become  popular,  must  transfer  a  large  share  of  the  fishing 
interests  of  the  Maritime   Provinces  to  the  Pacific  coast. 
The  laws  of    British  Columbia  are  very  liberal  to  those 
engaging  in  the  fisheries,  for  they  accord  to  all  persons  the 
right  to  use  any  vacant  public  property  for  the  purpose  of 
landing  and  curing  fish.     The  Dominion  Government,  too, 
has  promised  valuable  assistance  to  immigrants,  and  it  is 
stated  that  a  very  considerable  number  of  Lower  Province 
fishermen  will  this  year  avail  themselves  of  the  inducements 
offered.     If  our  neighbors  now  forestall  us,  the  blame  will 
be  our  own,  for  sagacious  men  of  far-reaching  perspicuity 
have  been  constantly  pointing  out  our  golden  opportunities 
and  instructing  us  how  to  improve  them.     In  the  matter  of 
public  lands,  the  Canadian  law  provides  that  any  surveyed 
■jx    unsurveyed    crown    lands    not    already    occupied    or 
recorded,  may  be  entered,  either  as  a  pre-emption  or  home- 
stead, by  any  head  of  a  family,  widow,  or  single  man  over 
eighteen  years  of  age,  who  is  a  British  subject,  or  an  alien 
who  has  declared  his  intention  to  become  such.     An  alien 
can  transact  business  and  hold  real  estate.     The  price  of 
land  is  $1.00  per  acre. 

Side  by  side  with  this  progressive  policy,  and  as  between  two 
countries  lying  side  by  side  and  equally  endowed  by  nature, 
we  find  that  in  Alaska  there  is  no  way  provided  by  which  a 
home  may  be  procured.  The  territory  having  been  ceded 
to  us  by  treaty  is  not  subject  to  pre-emption,  and  Congress 
has  been  most  dilatory  in  providing  means  to  remove  the 
disability,  or  in  enacting  remedial  laws.  There  has  been  an 
unwarrantable  neglect  of  Alaska  ever  since  its  purchase 
in  1867,  and  the  only  wonder  is  that  there  has  been  any 
development  at  all.  Not  until  the  autumn  of  1884 — seven- 
teen years  after  its  purchase — was  it  represented  by  a  Terri- 
torial governor  ;  and  up  to  date  of  the  present  incumbency, 
which  took  place  in  September,  1885,  no  fruitful  or  serious 
endeavor  was  known  to  have  been  made  by  the  territorial 
administration  to  use  the  large  discretionary  powers  con- 
ferred on  it  for  the  advancement  of  the  people,  or  the  im- 
provement of  the  country's  natural  capabilities.     To  the 


ECONOMICALL  V  CONSIDERED. 


late  considerable  SteSn  has  b«n*d  'ecTe'r Vo°r  *"""  f 
cat.on  of  individual  capital  and  S^or  thS  as  vet  h,?,''''''  I; 
encourairement       N»v»rfi,.i..    """'■^^'s''*y«' but  small 

(praise  ?o  the  racf  nTndets  L^VLf 'I  ■"'"  °'  ""^^ 
.nstituted  a  very  credLbirbarter   hop  att  n^e^ ""'  "'^^ 

J^':;iiL;«r;Lieii'n'i;;x^^^ 

no  commerce,  where  there  ar^  w  •    ""^'^y  ^"ere  there  is 

siiWaSi-HSr?^^^^^^^^^^ 

its  cession     iS  time— almost  nineteen  years  after 

Its  cession-httle  more  than  a  customs  district" 

gress  which'lpXrSd^"s'or -"^o^?;  .ro'isld-'d^ts't; 

ietr„?°?gh.'^°pZts"-  stif "::' ".""  -t/bShS  ^:e 

facing  poLsS^^^l^e  not^t^oS'S-r^or;,^ 
nan/r  ,h       ?^"  ""^'"°°''  "■=  establishment  of  a  we^k?5 

KeCdi«I„Uu7u'rf  "^rhulToffici  ■;  ''  ''"'"^'''^'«'  " 
to  the  headwaters  of  the  Yukon  River  of  fivircTfE.     k 
Sl;"l!,rr  Sf  i^fV  ^  dea^'an^dTn^lr^ 

•  Th«  Sitka  p-ublie  gchooi  has  fifty  pupiis,  boys  and  girls. 


64 


OCfl  XRir  Ar.ASK'A, 


■■Ml: 


!!i 


with  polished  boards  iind  cubes  of  thoRame  woods  ;  salmon, 
vod,  rook  cod,  Hca  trout,  sea  bass,  arctic  trout,  etc.,  pre- 
served in  alcohol ;  wheat,  oats,  timothy,  clover,  red-top, 
blue-joint  ;  potatoes,  turnips,  cabbages,  caulillowers,  etc.. 
lojjcthcr  witlj  wikl  fruits  and  berries  in  herinrtic;dly-s<  .dea 
glass  jars,  articles  showing  the  hatidicraft  of  ilic  u.itivo 
Alaskans,  and  interesting  curios.  Subsequently,  in  May 
just  past,  he  appeared  in  person  before  the  '\  >  rrilorial  <  om- 
niittec  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  to  urge  all  that  he  had 
previously  suggested  and  prayed  for.  IMie  governor  is 
obviously  a  live  man,  and  enthusiastic,  and  well  (jualified  to 
promote  and  guanl  the  interests  of  his  ollicial  charge.  His 
principal  appeal  is  for  the  privilege  )f  local  legislation  ;  and 
it  ought  to  be  a  sutlicient  assuratu  «;  and  » ticouragei..ent  to 
us  to  know  from  our  C'anadian  neighbors  that  "  under  wise 
local  legislation  the  Province  of  Hritish  L'olumbia  has  pros- 
pered greatly,  despite  the  neglect  which  it  |alsol  long  suf- 
fered at  thr  hands  of  the  home  g  ernment,  which  could 
neither  appreciate  the  value  nor  understand  the  needs  of 
that  far-distant  dependency."  So  admitted  ihe  Karl  Duf- 
lerin.  And  as  our  territorial  neighbor  has  dune,  su  may  our 
new  possession. 

The  southwestern  portion  of  Alaska,  in  particular,  is  a 
region  so  desirable  that  efforts  have  been  repeatedly  made 
within  the  past  half  century  by  the  British  or  Canadian  gov- 
ernments to  ac(p»ite  it  by  absorption  or  purchase.  During 
the  Crimean  war  schemes  were  afoot  to  wrest  it  from  Rus- 
sia, and  as  late  as  1878,  in  the  Dominion  Parliament,  while 
the  question  of  the  boundary  between  Alaska  and  British 
(.'olumbia  was  unilcr  consideration  at  Ottawa,  the  Hon.  Mr. 
Hunster  saiil  :  *'  Honorable  gentlemen  mif;ht  laugh,  but 
looking  at  the  matter  from  a  national  point  of  view,  he  fully 
meant  what  he  said  from  his  knowledge  oi  the  country,  that 
the  Territory  of  Alaska  possessed  a  more  genial  climate 
than  t>ttawa,  notwithstanaing  its  latitude,  while  Its  natural 
i-esources  and  capabilities  were  more  valuable  than  people 
had  any  idea  of.  When  hont)rable  members  of  this  house 
sneered  at  Alaska,  he  had  a  right  to  speak  from  his  own 
personal  knowledge  and  tell  them  they  were  mistaken  ; 
and  the  day  was  not  far  distant  when,  from  the  geograph- 
ical position  of  this  country,  they  would  see  the  force  of  his 
remarks  on  this  subject.  The  lease  of  Alaska  was  more 
than  enough  to  pay  one  million  di>llars  annually.  It  was  the 
best  investment  the  United  States  had  ever  made." 

.\t  present  there  are  scarcely  a  score  of  people  who  are 
aware  what  a  revenue  it  brintrs.  and  what  far  fi:reater  income 


iff 


ECONOMrCALLY  COmiDEREi  g^ 

is  likely  to  accrue,  and  those  who  read  or  listen  to  the  trov 
ernor  s  test.mony  smile  with  incredulity  !      Jut.t  wi  M^^ 
take  •'  a  generation.-  as  Secretary  Seward  believed     m  X 

che-chah-cos    (new  comers  intending  to  settle)  will  vi.it 

here    m  year     Kvery  steamer's  complemon   wYlI  be  n lied 

from  June  to  September.*    Among  the  most  observfni  and 

sagacious  are  to  be  Chief  Justice  wSite,  of  the  uTsu.fr^me 

Court  and  Associate  Justice  Gray,  and  these  we  mvh^ 

nrHnMi'"  ^."'^^t  '"•"'"'^^^^'y  '-^"^^  ^«P^^^  hones  ly      Whut^eve? 
prejudiced  or  Incompetent  persons  may  say  to  the  co  ntrarv 
Caleb  and  Joshua  will  be  believed.  contrary, 

anSSulT. "''"""  *"  ^"''*  '"^^  »'^«''  hundred  pro»p«clors  to  Sitk. 


•tOMl  TOTEM-POtB  (HAIDAH) 


*  rPPIpWwpiiHSilMBSH^^JS-- 


«iBa*;aiav^^i,ti^^ 


m^ 


AN  INTERIOR  VIKVV. 


Alfiskrt  is  nn  n/fimt  Mw/f-  only  to  tliosp  who  live  fnr  from 
it.      Ihis  is  no  more  inuadoxirrti  than  the  fart  tlxil    prox- 
imity always  makes  oi)jrrt«  scimu  noar.     Alaska  is  a  Iriciully 
atui  tanuliar  nri^hl»or   to  all   the  ilwcllrrs  of  tlio    North 
P.iiiCu-.  ami  the  ncopir  of    Port  'I'ownsond  wnd   Victoria 
think  no  more  of  the  bi-monthly  run  to  the  Alaskan  houn- 
darv  than  New  Yorkers  ilo  of  a  trip  to  Moston.    The  depar- 
ture of  the  hi  monthly  tnail  for  Sitka  Rttraets  less  altentioti 
than  the  sailing  of  a  Cunarder  for  CJrtat    Mritain.      Van- 
couver I  assei'.  this  way  and  ttorlhward  a  full  century  ago. 
l*P  to  <7U.t  the  Spatuards  dispttted  with  the  Knglish  for  the 
possession  of  the  loasl.     The  shores  of  Hritish  i:olinnl)ia 
have  beetv  settled  for  half  n  century  at  least;  fur-traders 
and  mn\ers  have  lottg  kept  it  In  a  state  of  eonstant  activity. 
So  also  Alaska  is  not  ft  new  discovery  ;  neither  is  its  UMc- 
tMtdfi'tratH^fijiKtfa.    It  has  been  knv>wn  to  the  Russians 
throujihtnit  its  length  and  breadth  for  ne-trly^a  cyntury,  ami 
to  the  Huds(Mt  Uay  (."ompany  for  foity  years  ur  nunc.  Voy- 
agf'-s,  trappers  and  hunters  have  traversed  it  iit  every  direc- 
tum, but  geographical  explorers  have  kncwn  b\it  little  about 
It.      riu  re  are  Indians  who  have  grown  gray  in  the  business 
of  freighting  g-^nnls  acn>ss  the  mountains  Into  the  Interior, 
over  the  very  trails  selected  by  the  government  parties  who 
have  been  exploring  the  Yukon  within  the  past  three  years. 
As  much  as  eight  tons  of  merchandise  have  been  packed 
over  tuo  Diilcat  trail  aUnte  in  a  single  season,  and  there 
were  svune  eighty  men  in  the  brigade.      There  arc  lots  of 
t»ld  residents,  American-bmn,  who  are  ciunpetent  to  speak 
oi  the  i^es<Mnves  of  the    entire    ctnintry    from    personal 
acijuaintancc  with  it     There  is  Alex,  t'hoquette,  of  Wran- 
geH.  a  Ki-ench  Canadian  tradei.  who  has  dwelt  in  Ala.ska  for 
twenty-eight  years,  and  speaks  all  current  languages,  and 
the  dialei  ts  of  all  the  tribes,  having  mingled  constantly  with 
them.     King  l.car.  a  native  of  C>hio,  also  living  at  \Vran- 
gell,  has  been  a  sojourner  in  the  territory  for  nearly  as  long, 
and  so  has  t'apt.  r.e<trge.  formerly  of  Massachusetts,  who 
niavned  a  sister  of  the  Russian  priest  at  Sitka,  and  now 


SF 


f«mo,,«a„„,'^    ,V;,^2^^^^^  of   Virginia   nn,l  now 

k.H.w«  .vory  ,{„ar  y    ?  U    .n  I    M        "^  "'"^'''  '""I*'  ""^ 
rnam  «„  fh/-  Siowfirt  "     iC.  n       '^''V'^ ''""'"''''  f'"'"  the 

tloz(Mig,,|,|M,,,,,   A    , ;;««'' <n.«7a,  and  |,aN  |o,.,„p,, 
fivll  war.  aiulirn/i     .?.  V  ^  "^  ^'''^'"  «<'ltlcr»  heforr  the 

Btinnllatc"!  veS  ^:;;  ;;t^^>;,i;!/:'-r-     '•-  of  .,.0  year. 

that  not  le«s  tharrooo  „  p  f.  ".  ^"''r'^*'''  ^'"'frsult 
them,  a,ul  thirty  new  variii^rrr  1"'''  'r'"  *^"""^^'«'*'  ''X 
American  marine  fSunn'nZ-'  '''  '"  "'"  ^'"^  "^  ^ortf 

«n.l  inexpensive,  t  rLovernm.Mr  .  '''''/'"''r,'  «'M<ally  simple 
miner.,  t'rader«,  Vrarilr^'"  "f.^^  ."'^''^  ^-''''^^  the  ai.l  of  'nil 
hUerior  of  Al^^ka    It  «hn..f  ^'•'"''  l"'"ctratin«  to  the 

P"i.it»to  Rive  i  Htructimi^«  ^  1^^  "^  ""  ""^'-'tti"? 

n^ap,  and  diaries  f  renSSi  i'"'  ''r  "t'*''  "'"^  ^"''"'''h 

«r..l(.giral  phononiena  thi  ?ortoM '?^^ 

of  soil,  the  streams  and  fLVr  1         ^  ^'''^  '""''•  ^''o  quality 

nnimals.  birtlsilsh  ZL^!  .  ''""''''^'''  ""''  «"  plants,^ treci. 
'V»'y  "''tod  an  the l''te;Xer"Th'''  i'""i''   ^'^  "^"T" 
Company,  who  are  thrsurc?  ^^of  tJn  l^'-^^'''J  '''^•?^''"« 
views  and  policy  are  li hernrZi  ''^"'''''"''•^"^  ^hose 

houses  at  a  I  nriLh«?l  S       t  I!'*"K«'eHHive,   have  warc- 

cient  bases  o'f',rL;t  o'ns''^:'''.  ^""'^'  ^""«^''"^«  ^ft^' 
as  has  l)ecn  oulli,  "d  tC!  Mi  "'^'"'  '[""^  "''^^h  method 
of  !»ome  otRcer  o  tl  e  si^LT  Ji  if  T"f  "''"'"^' ''«  '"  '^^arge 
Who  would  also  fu  W  tS|.tr7l  1  "  '^««^«tioned  at  Sitka, 
oroIoffir.il  ren«.rts     i.  . ,        i     "'"tements  of  daily  mete- 

they  are,  and  definVthe  Zl  '« 'L"  'llTT'^-  ^'^"'«^" 
seasons.  trecise  limit  and  duration  of  the 

nol?^:^';;^!;^,::;^"^,;^  -;|^-i-1 -peditions  should  in 
upon  official  truarantv  1  £  fi  W'll  budd  with  confidence 
o\   the   (Jreaf  YnL?„   v^.^l'^.'^l^^  Schwatka's  exploration 

,  „,.^j,  j^yjjj  jjg  headwaters  to  iti 


fffW*"'"— —- 


68 


QUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


u,, 


mouth,  an  intrepid  voyage  with  no  visible  base  of  sup- 
plies or  succor  in  the  last  emergencies  ;  the  arduous  jour- 
ney of  Lieutenant  Henry  T.  Allen,  across  the  "  Alaskan 
Range,"  in  the  i4Sth  Meridian,  from  the  headwaters  of  Cop- 
per river  to  the  sources  of  the  Tenana,  a  great  tributary  of 
the  Yukon,  500  miles  in  length  ;  the  winter  residence  and 
researches  of  Lieutenant  G,  M.  Stoney,  in  the  Northern  dis- 
trict of  Alaska,  along  the  rivers  which  empty  into  the 
Arctic  Ocean  ;  and  the  indefatigable  investigations  of 
the  Hon.  James  G.  Swan,  whose  remarkable  collections 
enrich  the  United  States  National  Museum  ;  all  these,  cov- 
ering such  an  extensive  area,  attest  the  heroism  of  modern 
science  and  the  economic  benefit  therefrom  derived,  im- 
mediate and  deferred.  The  published  results  of  these  in- 
vestigations have  as  yet  appeared  only  in  part ;  the  total 
will  give  final  proof  of  their  collective  value.  Newspaper 
writers  who  visit  Alaska  fall  into  the  habit  of  repeating 
what  some  careless  scribblers  have  placed  on  record,  so  that 
erroneous  opinions  hastily  formed  upon  insufficient  data 
soon  become  a  popular  impression.  Transient  visitors  to 
the  coast,  who  observe  the  snow  peaks  and  the  glaciers, 
delight  to  fancy  themselves  in  regions  hyperborean,  and  in- 
vest them  with  a  romance  of  the  most  frigid  character ; 
hence  misapprehension.  Says  one  writer  :  "  Flood  the 
cafions,  gorges  and  plains  of  Colorado  and  you  have  Alaska." 
This  might  satisfy  a  view  of  the  Archipelago  from  the  apex 
of  Mt.  Edgecumb,  but  it  will  hardly  apply  to  the  great 
Yukon  plateau,  which  is  as  broad  as  the  DaJkota  plains  from 
the  Mississippi  River  to  the  Black  Hills.  • 

It  is  in  no  respect  remarkable  that  knowledge  of  the  in- 
terior has  never  come  to  the  exterior  light  until  now.  It 
was  not  for  a  long  time  in  the  interest  of  the  Russian  Fur 
Company,  until  necessity  subsequently  modified  their  policy, 
to  encourage  prospectors  and  miners,  nor  immigration  and 
settlement,  because  the  Russian  government  reserved  the 
right  to  take  away  from  it  the  control  of  any  land  in  which 
mineral  deposits  were  found.  Wherefo*-"  maps  and  facts 
were  kept  secluded  from  vulgar  curiosity,  jpecimens  of  ore 
were  kept  locked  up  in  iron  chests  tighter  than  they  had 
ever  been  in  the  rock-ribbed  pockets  of  the  earth.  At  the 
same  time  the  Chilcat  and  Chilkoot  Indians,  who  maintained 
a  monopoly  of  trade  between  the  coast  and  that  part  of  the 
interior  drained  by  the  upper  Yukon,  were  not  only  jealous  of 
white  intrusion,  but  protested  to  Captain  Beardslee,  of  the 
United  States  nav/,  that  "  the  white  men  demoralized  the 
Indians  by  selling  or  giving  thenj  liquor  and  debauching 


their  women." 


AN  INTERIOR  VIEW. 


69 


.ion  and  .oolc  ^^I .Tll^l^'S^^Jl  "^^O^^ 

thoroughfare  of  the  inf /r' J.   f     '  ^^^  ^'^^^  water-way  and 
was  lin?dw?th  Russian  fr^H'  ^''^^^'^^^"8^  '^^  entire  breadth, 

pioneered  th^warin  search  o/m?'"  '    ^"^    '"'"^^  ^ad 

Laud  ■„•  ^he^lkfcTuI  rv  wMchTir.S"''  °".  '"^-ho-^e 
and  from  whence  a  trarnriv^t-  f  If  th' "'ghty  stream, 

Selkirk  to  Fn,?  V  I      ?™- .  '"  "■=  "^="  '"'"val  from  Fort 

rats' t''hrfo',rwiifse?i,«re„\ri^'^  -""  --'  -=  -»-" 

wiLu  d  nuge  poie— m  winter  moose-skin  teoept;  nr  ir^^r^oo 
tTere;?o  'i^w^""""""-  °'  -""°"  '"^''  "-"  'rlTp 

called  K„Jsk-h3"'"  ''^'•■■''  °'  '"^  '""  -°"'"  village 

H«'dsoX'cr;L;'s';^rr  "^"^  «■=  -'-  °f  -  o.d 

t    0«'ForR?lZ«!aVa*ro„t!^''^^'-^-^- 
many  Jut.     ""'""'"'«'""  ^"'="'^''-    These   people  had 

oaL  Klo't'l^ifk^ir^^  ?I.!:i,i°«*r«,r'h  ^aUe  ends, 

J     ^..,j  ~   r  inugc.       1  nese  people 


70 


OUR  NEW  ALASA'A. 


used  canoes  of  birch  bark  and  cured  their  salmon  on  scaf- 
folds of  spruce  poles. 

8.  Charley's  Village,  the  counterpart  of  To^>nny's,  with 
the  same  number  of  houses. 

9.  Fort  Yukon  ;  a  collection  of  toler.it/iy  vrd'  L)ui!t  houses, 
with  stockade  and  block-houses.  "  Vo;  iviv  hundred  miles 
above  and  two  hundred  miles  below  For'  taKco,"  Lieutenant 
Schwatka  says,  "  the  river  fiows  thro'tgh  «  r  1  )n  so  flat  that 
it  seems  like  the  floor  of  an  empty  lako  This  area  is 
densely  timbered  with  spruce."  The  ;:-.;>  jlue  outline  of 
the  Romantzoff  mountains  are  seen  in  c  l..n  distance,  far 
to  the  northward.  The  outlying  spurs  of  the  Alaskan  range 
are  seen  to  the  south.  The  lower  Yukon,  a  thousand  miles 
in  length,  extends  from  this  point  to  its  delta  in  Bering 
Straits  ;  its  banks  all  occupied  by  people. 

10.  An  Indian  village,  a  short  distance  below  Fort 
Yukon. 

11.  An  Indian  burial-ground  indicating  the  vicinity  of  a 
village. 

12.  Indian  village  above  the  "  Lower  Ramparts."  This 
part  of  the  river  was  picturesque  and  not  unlike  the  Hudson 
at  West  Point. 

13.  Old  town  above  Lower  Ramparts. 

14.  Another  town  below  Lower  Ramparts. 

15.  Trading  post  of  Nuklakayet,  eighteen  miles  below 
Tenana  River.     A  ten-ton  schooner  was  found  here. 

16.  From  tills  point  down  enumeration  becomes  tire^^vme. 
There  is  a  continuous  succession  of  Indian  villages,  and 
small  trading  stations  all  the  way,  day  after  day,  with 
chaloupes  and  fishing  craft.  Fish  weirs  are  spread  all  over 
the  river,  which  has  become  very  wide,  and  shallow  near  the 
shores.     A  steam  tug  plies  between  places. 

17.  Town  of  Kaltag,  near  the  ancient  mouth  of  the 
Yukon,  "  the  south  bank  being  a  simple  flat  plateau,  though 
the  north  bank  is  high  and  even  mountainous  for  a  distance 
of  more  than  four  hundred  miles  further  on." 

18.  The  picturesque  trading  post  of  Anvic. 

Just  beyond  Anvic,  the  last  Indian  village  is  passed,  and 
about  forty  miles  below  it  the  Esquimaux  Villages  begin,  of 
which  there  are  many.  Yet  further  down  is  a  Russian  Mis- 
sion with  a  Greek  church  ;  still  lower  the  town  of  Andre- 
avsky,  near  the  head  of  the  delta  of  the  Yukon. 

Koatlik  lies  at  the  river's  mouth. 

Two  days'  journey  by  steamer  along  the  coast,  north- 
east,  is  the  picturesque  seaport  of  St.  Michael. 

To  sum  up,  the  whole  country  covered  by  Schwatka's 


AN  INTERIOR  VIEW. 
becoming  obso^iet   "„   meSy  to  fsh^.'n'^^''  """-.happily 

again^'subdivided  „?rthreeiS",  wTl,'"''"''';''™^  '^ 
the  ron^f  rnni!    /     '     ^^?  ^^^^^''"  division,  lying  between 

part  a  spruce  timbered  fla,buf  the  ^'i^^^^^^^^ 
mountains,   500  miles  or  more    in    lenlth  ^^     .°^ 

southern  portion.  The  delta  ofTh^  V.  I  ^  '  occupies  its 
is  an  alluvial  flat  The  Yukon  itseTf  n?.  T  '^^r^'  '°"^^' 
Mississippi,  almost  b'sects  the  ter  tC  ^^^it'lv?^  ^\  '^^ 
between  the  Arctic  anH  Pr,r>;fi^  rT  T     •      ''*^^  midway 

east  and  west  direct ^.n  W  .P'^^f ''  ^°^'"^  '"  ^  general 
sweep  conTormlb  e  to  the  ou"!ne  oVthTco"'?"^  .^T'^'"^^^ 


there  are  several  large 


72  OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 

rivers  like  the  Stickeen,  the  Taku,  Suchitno,  and  Copper 
Rivers,  which  find  their  way  to  the  sea  through  great  gaps  in 
the  mountains,  and  others  which  drain  the  glaciers  and  the 
melted  snows  of  the  peaks.    On  the  north  shore  are  several 
large  rivers  flowing  into  the  Arctic.    The  prevailing  level 
of  the  great  interior  plateau  is  interrupted  only  by  a  few 
isolated  mountains  and  mountain  ranges,  which  lie  princi- 
pally in  the  southwest.     It  is  a  co-ordinate  and  extension  of 
the  plateau  of  the  Columbia  and  the  country  south  of  it, 
between  the  same  meridians,  except  that  the  arid  sage  and 
prickly  pear  of  the  latter  are  replaced  in  Alaska  by  bound- 
less grass  prairies  and  the  so-called  "  tundras,"  on  which 
the  moss  grows  knee-deep,  nurtured  into  rank  exuberance 
by  the  constant  melting  under  the  fervid  heat  of  midsummer 
of  the  omnipresent  stratum  of  ice,  which  underlies  it.     In 
like  msnner  the  grain  of    Manitoba  and  the    Northwest 
Territory  is  stimulated   into  a  marvelous  yield  by  the  very 
instrumentality  which  wiseacres  in  the  early  period  of  inve*;- 
tigation  declared  would  kill  it.     And  the  interior  of  Alaska 
is  much  milder  than  the   region  which  lies  east  of  the 
Rockies  in  the  same  latitude,  as  every  body  knows.     The 
conditions  of  prolific  growth  in  high  latitudes  are  continu- 
ous moisture,  and  a  temperature  sufficiently  high  and  evenly 
maintained  to  constitute  an  equivalent  for  the  longer  sea- 
sons   of    lower    latitudes    where    rainfall    is    insufficient. 
Maturity  can  be  secured  by  a  forcing  process  in  half  the 
time  that  is  reached  by  natural  operations  where  the  tem- 
perature and  irrigation  are  uneven.     In  the  long  days  of  an 
Alaskan  midsummer  the   sun    dips    but  little    below  the 
horizon,  and  Venus,  the  brightest  star  that  shines,  alone  is 
visible   at    midnight.      Between   sun'fjt    and   sunrise   the 
warmed  earth  s.  ffers  no  temporary  chill,  even  though  per- 
petual ice  lies  not  two  feet  ..v^neath.     Cole's  new  system  of 
subsoil  irrigation,  which  is  attracting  such  general  attention, 
and   shows  such    prodigious  losults,  is    merely  an    arti- 
ficial application  of  the  natural  process  in  operation  under 
the  shadows  of  the  north  pole.     It  counteracts  solar  ev;<po- 
ration,  supplying  moisture  to  the  growing  plants  as  ihey 
need  it,  and  becomes,  as  it  were,  the  measure  of  the  fertility 
of  the  soil.     It  is  not  unusual  to  find  the  ground  frozen  eight 
feet  deep  in  northern  Minnesota  ;  and  if  it  freezes  a  hundred 
feet  deep  in  Alaska,  what  does  it  signify,  more  or  less  ? 

When  the  future  requirements  of  settlement  shall  test  the 
capabilities  of  the  interior  climate,  it  will  undoubtedly  bs 
found  as  fruitful  as  Minnesota  for  all  crops  not  requiring  a 
long  period  of  ripening. 


TOTEM-POLES. 


-     /    I 


iT^flC*^' 


■ 


MP: 


isim^nm.^ 


AN  INTERIOR  VIEW. 

the  very  vergf  ^f'^hTL^r" c'ea""'  ZT^  ""T^'  '^ 
report,  which  is  more  troSriUh.nf  ,  .^ ".'''«  admirable 
refers  to  these  ir^^^^TxT^ltio^^^^^  'ts  colorinjr,  he 

O"  reindeer  which  find  nast^r...  ^^'^.f  ^^^  ^^"ds  of  caribou 

of  ?rass-covered  btl'at:^XXer^'7^^^^  ,^^^ 
an  impenetrable  underbrush  of    hIm  '        ^"ot-hills,  with 
vast  expanses  of  treeless  nr.ir?/     f^u"^??^  vegetation  :  of 
of  rank  dead  L^rass  whfrh'^  '  ""^  ^^'""^  ^'^'"''^  '"^my  soil  • 

previous  year,  Sine  like'I'n'  "7'  ".l^^'^  -^""^  f™  ^he 
speaks  of  thunder  Ss  of  hrn'  ,"^  T""^'  '''^^-     ^^^ 
in  June,  of  flowers  T.''-'^^^^^^^^ 
blistering  sun  oTwilrrh  "^P'  °^  clov.  Uess  skies   a,i 

fusion,  of  myrbds  o    ti^^.'"^  ""'""'  ""^'  ^^^^''''^^  '"  P'^ 

other  like  phenomena  ;^ttSrt'rarlL''"r  '   ^*'' ^"^ 
conceived  opinions  of  the  ternU  A' ^^  with  commonly 

waters  of  the  Vukon  ami  t.  .;>'.' ,  ^P  to  the  very  head- 
salmon  run-  the  adf'  L.  I  f^'"''  tnbutaries,  the  nobU 
trout,  which  reach1i'n''"ou'1f  •^'•^  '-"f^  ^^'^^  '"^'^'-^ 
brooklets  teem  with  mounf.n^.r,'^*'^'''^'  ''"^  ^'^  the 
in  the  long  rel  hes  of  Jhe  Vukon  u  if  "'  ^''""''''"^  = 
Its  fluvial  feeders  erav  ino- th    i,       •    '*''^'  "'^  ^'-•"   ^«  in 

caught  .ngre.t!.:bun'Sc"e!  "^1f"o"f  wHl^r^^r^'^'  '^^' 
the  country  in  mid-summer    .1  c  u    ^  ^'''   P'^'*^  through 
brush  camps  a^d  canrs  t^nu   i-''^''^';'  ^"^''  '••^"  ^i"  ^"^1 
frequent  intervafs.  Xre  the  InH?'"^   "^^"  ''''^'   ''•''"'<'^  ^t 
their  winter  supply     and  shonlHi"?  ''''^   '"'■'"^'  ^'^"  f^^ 
trate  beyond  into  those  v^.r^l    T  ^u'  .^"^  '■^'^'«""  P^ne- 
seldom  trod.hfwil    dfsccvfr  oth   '  ^^"^  ^^'^'^  "^^'" '^^^e 
hides  and  pelts  TinS  ?r  '      A       ^"^'^"'  ^'^^  stores  of 
-noose  .vh.cK  they  haTcaotu"ed  .'  ''""■"',  "^  ""^*^"^^  ^^"^ 
of  the  far-reaching  '' lundJis"'  or        T^  '''"  ^'"^^^^  copses 
few  black     r  imz^lv  b"ar<;^;i  t    P^''^'''»"^«  the  skins  of  a 

some  river  baiik  o7shte  o  ite"  f'/'r  ^^ 'tT"^'  ''^'-'^^ 
hunt  in  th.  tangles  of  the  f.^u  *'"-.  ^"^'^"^  f^''"-  to 
b'.arsand  the  d.rcuJties  of  he  ""^V'-  '']"  ^^•"'^'^"^'^-  ^^ 
hx.kevcn  ^r  smaU 'ram^  .„,  ^  ^?.^'^  "^^'''^^  '^  unsafe  to 
-y.  .:.".e  and  Ihe  Sods'f  thV'^UTunt  -"^-^^  """ 
no  «?-«  tor  hounds  in  the  roverm  of  a  i  .'  '^^''"^  '« 

wew  try  to  run  throug    an  osat,lf '"^"^^i  they  miffht  as 

the  reindeer  or  c;.ri3hi  1  fnf.i  .^^''-  ?  '^""  '"^'^n'-*  "•"e 
cove^in;:  of  te„e  'o  lot/^  2^'h^'  ^"^■';^'-"-««.  "nJ 
shfrht  a  habitation  is   a  suffiH'..?.  *"  ^^'"^  ^'"^^  that  so 

.:.«„„.  .,o.  or  V^^^J^^^^i^.  ■ 


■.»/■■"■;    } 


Ill 
jj 


ii     'J- 


#!  .^r 


76 


OC/A'  NEW  ALASKA. 


tive  mildness  ;  albeit  the  Indians  of  the  lower  river  have 
greater  need  of  more  substantial  houses,  which  they  build 
like  those  of  white  folks,  with  boards  riven  from  the  helm- 
lock  and  smoothed  with  adzes,  thatching  them  with  the  bark 
of  cedar.  The  tundras  or  moss  barrens  where  they  hunt 
professionally,  and  except  for  daily  supply,  are  similar  to 
the  "  muskegs  "  of  northern  Minnesota,  and  the  adjacent 
country — not  wholly  a  growth  of  yielding  moss,  knee  deep, 
but  interjected  with  thickets  of  willows  and  mingled  with 
rank,  coarse  grass  which  grows  breast  high  ;  sometimes  they 
are  interspersed  with  cranberry  bogs  and  patches  of  wild 
roses,  with  here  and  there  a  slough  or  pocket  of  water,  dyed 
wine-color  with  the  steepings  of  the  dead  leaves  and  mosses. 
Walking  over  a  tundra  is  like  promenading  a  feather-bed. 
This  thick  undergrowth  of  moss  is  found  in  all  the  forests 
and  above  the  timber  line  as  well  ;  and  a  lady  correspondent 
of  the  American  Register,  of  Paris,  France,  who  is  a  botanist 
and  an  impulsive  student  of  the  woodlands,  has  written  : 

•'  The  Alaskan  forests  are  the  finest,  in  a  picturesque  way, 
in  the  United  States.  Trees  grow  upright  from  prostrate 
and  dead  trees,  from  the  tops  of  stumps,  and  they  are  draped 
with  black  and  white  moss,  dry,  fine,  and  crinkly,  like  hair, 
which  produce  a  most  weird  and  Druidical  effect.  Mosses 
grow  to  a  depth  of  from  six  to  ten  inches,  and  on  the 
top  of  stumps,  dead  branches,  and  every  dead  thing  is 
cushioned  deep  with  moss  and  draped  with  vines.  Par- 
ticularly does  the  Cornus  Canadensis  en  wreath  logs  and 
stumps  in  the  most  charming  way."  All  of  which  I  hope 
will  corroborate  what  others  say  of  the  exuberance  of 
Alaska  :  yet  I  think  the  tree  mosses  there  can  in  nowise 
compare  with  those  of  Florida  or  Louisiana. 

The  upper  portion  of  the  Yukon  valley,  or  rather  the 
entire  region  which  the  upper  river  drains,  is  spoken  of  as 
almost  a  perfected  Eden.  Flowers  bloom,  beneficent  plants 
yield  their  berries  and  fruits  ;  majestic  trees  spread  their 
umbrageous  fronds,  and  song  birds  mai.e  the  branches 
vocal.  The  water  of  the  streams  is  pure  and  pellucid  ; 
the  blue  of  the  rippled  lakes  is  like  Geneva's  ;  their  banks 
res|)lendent  with  verdure,  and  with  grass  and  shining  peb- 
bles. Wherever  the  rocks  lift  up  their  crags  they  are 
cushioned  with  luxurious  moss.  Nature  is  enjoying  a 
grateful  surrttase  from  labor.  Lower  down,  in  the  middle 
country,  the  creation  is  quite  ^fi*-iihed.  One  can  per- 
ceive that  the  processes  of  \\,<.  f  tial  forces  are  still  in 
operation.  All  the  fluvial  waters  are  white  or  milky  with 
the  glacial  mud  washed  down  from  the  slu-^es  of  the  out- 


.    V 


-*•     '^i 


AN  INTERIOR  VIEW. 

muddy  MLo:ri^^„The'",tp[^"^LYsSS^•  ^^''\' 
impetuous  White  River  into  h,  v„r  ■  ?P  '  P"'"'*  ""e 
swift  that  it  sends  i,.  H?.,  „       J     ""'  "'*  "  <="'•'•<!'"  so 

debris  of  tl^e'glade'     n  S^al^f the  'o.f  ^  "'"■  '"= 
changinir  its  soa-klitur  hl.iP  VJf         ^     ^    ^^'^^'"    streams, 
fish  a'voi'd.     A'^ftw '^fbd^rtSe  WhTe"lntf  "•^"  ^^ 
the  same  size  and  character  cLes  in    caLSth''^.'''^"'"  °^ 
and  others  still    at  frpn.,«r.f  ;  V       ,'  ^^'''^a  the  Stewart : 

them-as  far  down  as^^hen^v'^J'^'V^'  ''^^^^  ^  d^^^"  of 
Yukon,  five  hundred  mil  Ir'mtr?"  1.7  sSlar"^  ^°^^ 
WKienmgs  of  the  river  h^Mc  ^ri T  '^  i  ".^"  '^^^^  ^s  are 
of  the  sLe  mud^wfJch  are  ^radaS^  '^P^^'^« 

paring  a  richness  of  aUuvLl  land  lih  "1'''""'  "P'  P^^' 
brief  span  of  geolotnca  tinii  il  ^  '"  ^^^  ^^^''^^  of  a 

fields  of  all  th^yp^rblrn  J^^^^^  '^  "^"^^  f^'-^iJe 

further  down  the  outflow  of  ?;v  ^""^  ^  thousand  miles 
out  land  in  th^  Bering  L  fustt  ht°he'''*'  "  '"''^'"^ 
centuries  at  the  moufhs  of  the  M  ssissionfJor"^  °."  '^ 
dangerous  to  aoDroqrh   fro,r,  f^  LPP  '  ^^rmmg  shoals, 

r™a^;tth  £S££: « -s  vs 

hereaway,  not  only  up  s  ream  hnt  .1.  ^^f^^^^^^'^aux  ;  and 
study  their  nativeLbits  and  'pec  fe  n  T''^  °"^-^^" 
and  boreal  as  in  the  Kanrcountrv  anTr  ■'''  P"""^ive 
still  suggestive  of  sealskin  Sb"?  and  If.'?','  ''' 
.1  hough  their  houses  are  modern  and  within  thpfr""'' 
mfluence  nf  th*.  r^r..^i       •    •  witnm  the  civi hzm? 

•early  i„  S.p?eS!^'ith°^sht;':eard7ogs"att,:d'"r,  "^ 

cious   atmosphere   o^f"^ stile  fish    '^°''„^'-'^K'-'"=1,i".',he  tena- 
hairless  sealskin  boo  s  well  tinned  ,„ ,  '"■"'■"    '"","''=   ""^"g 

made  .f  the  P^^-elirSjVb-errof't^e'rkSr.rr  S 


s 

1* 

5 


78 


Ot^/t  A'A»^  ^r.ASA'A, 


lu>oliB  of  wood  (\\\\\  bone,  and  ninny  rtn  ornflmfHI  fii* 
ntonsil  inlo  \vlto«»<'  inm'niovis  ooniposiiiou  rtio  l;\liiii tvtcil 
poitions  ol  the  skeletons  rtiul  ii\tegumentN  of  Wiilius,  Heal 
.'uul  \vl\i(!e. 

Su(  h  lire  the  v.-tried  ferttures  of  our  interior  dotnftln,  not 
less  foreign  l>eertusc  our  flag  llortts  ovef  tliein,  hut  con- 
lerniuy  >ih  the  tno\e  -mi  that  atrount,  and  well  wiulli  our 
inve<»tin;»tion,  not  nierely  as  hunters  of  eurion,  Init  as 
speenlators  and  shiewd  men  <<f  business.  Undoubtedly 
p<irtions  of  Alaska  are  very  eharntin|{  at  eertain  seasons  of 
the  year,  Init  the  sophistioaied  explorer  will  iiuline  to  avoid 
thent  in  tly-tinte.  The  nuttanie  of  natural  history  is  not 
eonlined  exvlusively  \o  the  tropies.  I'he  inosipiiloes  of 
Alaska  are  untpiestionably  biji^er  than  the  F;oulhein  bred, 
and  the  higher  up  the  Arv  lie  pole  we  «'lin\b,  the  biR^er  and 
more  insatiate  they  beeoine.  '•  In  faet,"  says  Srhwalka, 
"our  greatest  ineonvenienee  within  the  Ardir  eirrle  was 
the  tropieal  heat  (July  3(jth)  and  the  dense  swarms  of  ynats 
and  n\osipiitoes  that  nuM  useverywhere  wlu'n  we  approai  hed 
the  land.  That  ni^htnone  of  the  partveoidd  sleep  iu>(with- 
stauvlinji  the  mosouito  bars  over  us.^'  Uiu  tuir  sumnu't* 
saunterers  alon^;  tl\e  eoast  Xi\\\  have  none  «>f  these  ex* 
oruriatiujii  experiences.  There  are  no  pestifenuis  insects 
to  be  droavled,  for  every  l)le»sed  breath  whith  blows  froi\j 
the  south  will  waft  thetu  inlaiul,  over  the  hills  and  far 
away,  v'^eated  it\  his  I'omfortable  easy  ehair  on  derk.  whilo 
the  steamer  steadily  pursues  her  weaving  way  through  the 
clustering  islands,  eaeh  happy  tourist  who  latiguidly  lollows 
these  (-losin>>  linos  will  be  eonteni  to  tsdve  for  urantetl  the 
truth  of  what  thoy  say,  and  srareely  inelii\e  at  preMiil  to 
push  the  matter  to  a  persoital  i»u|uiry. 


j^..<idff!l^ 


•mXl-SKIN    IIOAKKA. 


I 


S,     •' 


HOME  OF  THE  SIWASH, 


vast  I.Micl   irssTH      "m        ' '•     7'''''''''''^'^^ 

vessel,  rayor  ti.eliNi.MMn.if  ....li     7  '  '•'"'  """""""I  fhc 

ll.c-  ira.l,.  ,,. ,  w   ;  m    r  '„  >    if'"'  >".'"  •I"-"'"     '^'"1  «" 

rcM  ..I  Ihv  I,;,  sSr,    ,  n.'l  u''  ""''"■'  '"  "I"'''''''  '"'■  'I'" 

•""' 'i  V:  i:-;;s;:^r;;rl,'i';;;;  ;7.:^;-:i,.n;r ■"'^■•'  '"■ 


I, 


8o 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA, 


is  often  ornamented  with  grotesque  carvings  of  nondescript 
creatures,  animals,  birds  or  fishes.  One  model  has  a  pro- 
jecting prow  or  beait  below  the  water-line,  precisely  like 
that  of  the  old  triremes  of  the  Romans  and  the  modern  ram 
of  our  wr  ships.  There  is  another  pattern  similar  to  the 
common  Indian  birch  canoe.  Their  old-fashioned  war  ca- 
noes were  formidable  craft,  carrying  a  hundred  men,  and 
Alaskan  history  relates  how  a  fleet  of  ten  of  these  made  an 
expedition  of  1,000  miles  down  the  coast  to  one  of  the  Hud- 
son Bay  posts,  in  the  early  days,  to  capture  a  man  against 
whom  they  had  a  grievance.  The  magnitude  of  their  naval 
demonstration  is  sufficient  evidence  of  their  inherent  nerve 
and  determination. 

Indian  trails  are  found  all  along  the  coast,  which  lead  up 
to  bodies  of  fine  timber  where  canoes  have  been  built,  and 
the  valuable  wood  otherwise  utilized  for  totem  poles  and 
for  carving  and  building  purposes.  Upon  some  of  these 
trails  much  labor  has  been  expended  in  bridging  ravines, 
corduroying  marshy  places,  and  cutting  through  trunks  of 
fallen  trees  no  less  than  six  feet  in  diameter.  Across  the 
mountain  ranges,  in  the  interior,  white  birch  grows  to  great 
size,  and  there  its  bark  is  substituted  for  the  cedar.  Dug» 
outs  of  Cottonwood  are  also  used  in  broken  water.  There 
are  no  skin  canoes  used  in  Alaska  south  of  Bering  Sea. 
The  largest  wooden  canoes  are  more  than  fifty  feet  long, 
capable  of  carrying  sixty  men,  hewn  from  great  cedar  logs 
with  much  labor,  being  dug  out  with  axes,  and  then  thinned 
with  adzes  to  the  required  thickness.  They  are  next 
steamed  by  filling  the  cavities  or  holes  with  water  heated 
by  hot  stones,  so  as  to  give  them  their  graceful  curves, 
after  which  they  are  spread  to  the  desired  width  and 
braced.  They  have  often  as  much  as  eight  feet  beam. 
Usually  they  are  painted  black  outside,  but  when  new 
they  often  show  quaint  decorations,  in  bright  colors, 
which,  however,  are  very  soon  lost  by  weathering.  The 
Indians  take  as  great  care  of  their  canoes  as  the  Arabs 
do  of  their  horses.  When  not  in  use  they  are  drawn 
up  on  sloping  beaches  in  front  of  their  villages  or 
camps,  and  carefully  covered  with  brush,  mats  or  sails  to 
protect  them  from  the  weather.  A  native  will  take  off 
his  own  coat  to  wrap  around  the  ornamental  prow  of  his 
boat,  which  is  as  much  as  he  would  do  for  his  "  klootch." 
The  best  of  the  canoes,  .  f  course,  cost  a  high  figure,  and 
great  pains  is  frequently  employed  in  clearing  away  bowlders 
and  rocks  to  provide  a  snug  berth  for  them  upon  the  beach. 
They  are  weatherly  craft  in  a  sea  way,  and  the  fact  that  rone 


HOME  OF  THE  SI  WASH.  .  g, 

skillful  seamanship  The  nave  Ah  &ni'  T,  ""^"^'"^  ^'^ 
or  drowned.  In  temnestnm  1  ^''  u  "/''  ''^'''""^  wrecked 
spirit  of  the  storm  bXsin^^^^^^  ^'  propitiates  the 

rock  caves  alongSiorVa^id  fn  .^7^.  "^'."^  '"^^""^^  '"'«  ^he 
same  into  his  pi^e  and  smokes  se  rnC:  "Z'f^  ''''\''' 
people  smoke  less  than  any  others  Ih-'^  ^  ''^^'  ^'^'^"'^ 
a  fact  phenomenal.  One  seldom  iL  T'  '"^^'  ^'^'^h  is 
his  mouth.  ^"^'^'^om  sees  a  native  with  a  pipe  in 

ari"um'in7and^heS^f^'  '^  ^r"^^'''  ^^'^  ^^e  salmon 
perature  scaVceiy  4%i^rt^  perfection,  the  tem- 

month  to  month    Ih?Sil- ^h    1^1'"',  ^'■°"^.  '""  ^«  «""  ^"^ 
takes  his '' klootch-anifKH^  ^'"'^"^  <^^bin  and 

tion   where   hf  can  cath     n  f  ""''^' '°  '"'""'  ^'^"'^^  '"^a- 

winter's  use;  a^d  as  thfnativTs'inclin:  to  T/^'^  °'  ''''  ''' 
combine  for  mutual  hein  in  K.?-  ^^  gregarious  and 

usually  has  pSrif  companv  V?rv"'''.  '"^  ^""^'"^'  ^e 
aggregations  of  ^canvas  ten  s  Jd  VT'^'^^r  ^'^  ^^eir 
boards  which  skirt  fhJcl;./^   shanties   of  bark   and 

the  shelS  of  some  d  ct  aVeL'f^e  ramr'^'  T'.  ""^^^ 
mountain,  with  busy  canoes  nivinlVw'^  overshadowing 

and  the  klootchmen  spreading  our  ^h'""^  I'^i  ^''?  '^'  ^«'"^« 
adjacent  rocks  to  d?r  "'llootrt  •''"'^'^^.f"'"^^"  ""  '^' 
synonym  for  woman  in  th.  ri,  7-  ""^  klootchman,  is 
concubine  m,^tr?ss  o?  Ictuaul?" "^  '"^^'  ^^°  ""^V  ^e  wife, 
ments  are  not  a™  LeTbl  form;,  °'  Pf'^^'-^'^iP  attach-' 
lone  country ;  and  everrsoio^urnl^  h^'  of  marriage  in  that 
wedlock  or  otherwisrwhrirtr^^^^  ha.s  his  "  klootch  "  in 
handmaiden.     ?X's!me  vernacurher"r^'"''V^P^'-  "' 

numeri^ly  ?he  stron  °  Jt 7^^^^  P^'^'^^P^  ^^ing 

representat^ives  fSlated  th^f  °^^°"^'■r^  «f  national 
facilitate  intercoursr  ^  words  i7mcf.  ^'"^"'^^^  ^" 
were  adopted,  a  few  of  them  n.fr  •''  common  use 

a  very  lal^ge  proporLn  bastL'/rench"  Th  ^'''''''-  ^^"' 
are  simply  phonetic  exnr7«irrr  k  '  ^he  remainder 
ideas  conveyed  by  the  so  >nvf';  ^^'"    P^°"0""«d,   the 

is    'V/.->l./'Tin   ''iaLrXl-'-^^^  '"''^"'^'  ^"^"«ement 
patter-chuck,      a    crow    'V<zK/.faa/,"    a 


ll 


82 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


I 


cough  "hoh-hoh,''  the  heart  '' tum-ium,"  a  handkerchief 
"  hak-at-chutn,"  etc.  There  are  about  five  hundred  and 
fifty  words  in  all,  and  with  this  limited  vocabulary  and 
the  use  of  signs,  a  man  can  travel  the  whole  North-west 
over  from  Central  Montana  to  Bering  Sea.  In  fact, 
Chinook  has  almost  superseded  the  native  dialects,  of  which 
there  are  no  less  than  ten  upon  the  coast,  and  perhaps  as 
many  more  in  the  interior.  The  different  tribes  seldom 
attempt  to  converse  in  each  other's  language.  There  are  a 
few  words  in  which  the  letter  "  1  "  is  substituted  for  "  r," 
Chinese  fashion,  indicating  possibly  an  ancient  Asiatic  con- 
nection ;  for  most  of  such  words  are  appropriated  from  the 
native  tongues,  a  f.ict  which  no  doubt  must  be  gratifying 
to  those  who  claim  to  be  able  to  prove  that  the  Chinese  were 
the  earliest  discoverers  of  America. 

In  the  early  days  when  the  monotony   of   isolation   was 
varied  by  reprisals  among  the  tribes,  slaves  were  habitually 
made  by  the  victors,  and  I  have  heard  it  stated  by  white 
men  who  claim  to  have  been  residents  a    the  time,  and  cog- 
nizant  of  the  circumstances,  that  the  Suimpshean  Indians, 
near  Dixon  Channel,  used  to  kill  and  eat  certain   parts   of 
their    prisoners,  taking  bites  from  the  fleshy   portions   of 
the  arm  and    breast    and    thigh    to    give  them  courage 
"  skookum  ium-tum."      Others   placed   the   necks  of   their 
captives  across  a  log,  fastening  the  bodies  to  the  ground  by 
saplings  weighted  with  stones  at  the   ends,   and  so  killed 
them   with  axes.      Slaves    were   often   killed   at   "  house- 
warmings,"  one  being  placed  under  each  of  the  corner  up- 
rights  when   the   frame   was   raised,   the   ceremony  being 
sometimes  attended   with   the   greatest  cruelty.      With  a 
house  of  irregular  foundation  lines  the  sacrifice  of  life  was 
great.     One   occasionally   catches   accidental   glimpses  of 
old-time  war-implements  which  indicate  an  ancient   degree 
of  savagery  out  of  which  these  people   seem  to   have   long 
since  passed.     Slavery  however  continues  to  this  day,  and 
a  sort  of  traffic  is  constantly  maintained,  whose  conditions 
are  more   binding   than    the    obligations    of    matrimony. 
Women  often,  and  sometimes  men,  arc  traded  for  a  valu- 
able consideration,  or  thrown  into  a  bargain  as  a  sort  of 
rcmplisage — white  people  not  seldom  being  the  purchasers  ; 
and  I  have  heard  that  those  so  obtained  make  far  more 
dutiful  servants  than  others  who  farm  out  their  laboi,  show- 
ing conscientious  fidelity  in  their   obligatory   relationship. 
Some  of  the   old   settlers   have   women   living  with  them 
whose  legal  status  it  would  be  difficult  to  determine,  but  so 
it  is  in  all  the  wilderness  domain  of  the  fur    companies,  the 


HOME  OF  THE  SIWASH. 


«3 


hw?n  llu^  half-breeds  in  the  North-west  being  counted 
by  tens  of  thousands.  On  the  Alaskan  coast  the  hvbHd 
product  of  a  native  crossed  with  a  Russian  i    designated  a 

CuIfn'M ''•''''''  Jf/^enchand  Spanish  mixture!  in  the 
uulf  of  Mexico  and  West  Indies 

At  Kasaan  Bay  the  Indian  widow  of  old  Baronovick  the 
Russian  smuggler,  still  lives,  with  a  goodly  inherkance  and 
two  buxom  daughters,  which,  I  have  been  b?ormed  are  a^ 

trt.  ;°V'^%^°^'''^'^  ^""^  of  $4,ooo-for  the  lot  f  The 
girls,  as  I  saw  them,  seated  on  their  home-veranda  near 
the  savory  salmon  cannery,  and  dressed  in  comely  black 
dresses  of  modern  mode,  were  not  bad  looking  The  voun^ 
women  of  the  coast  are  uniformly  comely,  buf  their  mChf 
are  immense,  and  they  have  an  excess  of  ad  pose  wh  ch 
grows  greasy  and  more   flabby  as  the^^  grow   older      Thev 

fJaSrr'"  '°  ^^"^>^  '^°^^^'  b"^  the^prevaningcostumJ 
IS  a  black  shawl  over  a  calico  skirt,  and  a  bright  vellow 
kerchief  over  the  head.  Very  often  they  blSen^  thei> 
faces  with  deer  tallow  and  charcoal,  some  say  1o  keen  off 
tThT S^cr^Throi^r^  ^'"^  complexloL,  and  ot'hers 
ments  imo  fh.ir  ?'^'  '^°'"^"  thrust  great  stone  orna- 
ments  into  their  pendulous  ears,  and  ever,  some  voune- 
women  use  a  lip  pin  of  silver,  steel,  or  bone,  wWch  thev 
push  outward  through  the  flesh  from  the  insid^  of  the  lowe? 
ip     It  ,s  said  this  IS  ihe  badge   of  wife-hood.     But  s^ch 

tom^^nH''  "°,'  P""'"^-  }^'^^  "^^"y  °^  ^heir  discarded  cus- 
toms and  implements,  they  are  the  relics  of  a  barbarism 
which  passed  away  fully  two  generations  ago.  The  g  rS 
look  much  better,  according  to  mod.rn  ideas^  in  their  sUver 
bracelets  and  earrings,  and  the  marvel  is  how  so  griat 
mprovement  has  taken  place  in   so   comparatively  short  a 

mm  thiir^'J!  '"'"  '°T  ^^  "-"^^  gray-headed  old  folks  take 
,'Xc  fP^c'ous  chests  souvenirs,  such  as  medicine- 
rattles,  masks  dance-blankets,  stone  war-clubs  and  idols ; 
and  I  fancied  they  regarded  them  tenderly,  with  some 
nT">?  fF'''  ^l!^^  °'^  ^'"^^  '  but  very  often  they  w^H 
Irlin  '*'"'"  '^^^'^^  ^"''  ^^^h  to  the  curio-hunters,^  who 
frequently  pay  mos^       orbitant   prices.     Industry   is   one 

gaged  in  fishing  and  hunting,  or  employed  at  the  several 

ToXon'r-^'K  'r''  ^^^y  ^"''^  canoes  and  houses  pack 
goods  on  their  backs  over  the  mountains  to  the  mines  and 
do  all  sorts  of  manual  labor.  They  are  very  powerful 
The  regulation  pack-load  is  seventy-five  pounds  Wi"h 
this  on  their  backs  they  will  keep  aheid  of  the  mos?  experi^ 
enced  mountain  climbers,  and  I  know  of  one  who  paS 


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Sciences 
Corporation 


13  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WHSTIR.N.Y    I4SI0 

(716)  •73-4S03 


^ 


84 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


over  a    steep   new    trail,    which   was    hardlv   more  than 
blazed  and  cleared,  a  load  of  125  pounds,  to-wit:  two  sacks 
of  flour,  a  shovel,  rome  drills,  a  ten-pound  salmon,  and  his 
clothes  and  blankets.     They  do  tremendous  tasks  on  very 
short  commons,  but  when  they  do  get  afoul  of  a  full  kettle 
they  never  leave  it  while  there  is  a  mouthful  left.     In  camp 
they  are  splendid  attendants,  drying  wet  clothes,  c'.eanino- 
guns,  cooking,  building  shelters,  and  doing  all  manner  oi 
"  chores."     Once  I   followed  the   trail   six   miles  over  the 
mountam  from  Juneau  into  Silver  Bow  Basin,  and  was  as- 
tonished at  the  work  going  on  there  in  hydraulic  and  placer 
mming.     Sluices  were  built  or  dug   up  to  the  very  snow 
line,  and  ten-inch  iron  pipes,  as  well  as  every  other  article 
of  use  and  construction,  and  contents  of  dwellings  and  stores 
had  been  carried  there  upon  the  backs  of  Indians  at  one  cent 
a  pound  !     The.se  men  are  ambitious  to  earn  praise  and 
money,  and  are  not  mere  eye-servants.      The  women,  too, 
are  seldom  idle,  and  when  at  home  are  occupied  with  the 
needle,  or  with  braiding,  weaving,  basket-making  and   em- 
broidery.    Dogs    are    always  members  of  the  household. 
They  are  civil  and  mild-mannered,  like  their  owners,  and  sel- 
dora  bark.     In  the  winter  season  they  also  do  their  share 
of  appointed  work,  dragging  sleds  over  the  deep  snows  and 
freighting  goods  and  fuel  when  the  watercourses  are  frozen. 
They  are  of  the  true  Esquimaux  type,  of  colors  brindle,  white 
and  tawny. 

However,  the  Indians  have  their  bad  traits  is  well  as  their 
good  ones.  In  trading  they  are  very  unscrupulous.  They 
will  take  a  mean  advantage  of  every  opportunity.  They 
will  not  abide  by  a  contract.  They  will  demand  back  what 
they  have  already  sold,  and  tell  you  that  their  "  klootch  " 
objects  to  the  trade.  Like  the  strikers  in  Belgium,  they 
put  their  women  in  front  when  they  would  shield  their  own 
craven  selves.  But  this  is  policy ;  for  they  well  know  the 
consideration  with  which  the  whites  regard  the  fair  sex. 
Indeed  they  are  themselves  quite  chivalrous  and  consider- 
ate toward  their  women,  impo.sing  upon  them  no  inequit- 
abl.-  burdens,  but  assuming  upon  themselves  those  heavier 
physical  tasks  which  eastern  squaws  are  obliged  to  perform 
unassisted  ;  even  declining  to  excel  them  in  the  emulous 
and  honorable  competition  of  a  canoe  race,  an  act  which 
they  declare  would  cover  them  with  everlasting  disgrace. 
But  It  may  be  that  the  women  wield  the  better  paddle.— 
''  Klaxta  kumtux"—yi\\o  knows?  When  a  tribe  or  com- 
munity  becomes  imbued  with  the  elements  of  politeness, 
which  is  refined  humanity,  there  is  indeed  hope  for  them. 


hoa:e  of  the  si  wash. 


85 


Nevertheless,  they  are  arrogant  and  exacting  when  thev 
have  the  upper  hand,  and  liklall  subordinates  must  be  ke  J 
m  their  lower  places.  Once  the  Chilkats  ?hreaTened  to  S 
some  mmers  who  wished  to  cross  the  moumains  over  o  the 
Yukon,  and  re  used  to  pack  goods  for  them  The  distance 
was  seventy  m.les.  But  when  they  discovered  that  wo  of 
the  mmers  had  started  for  the  gunboat  for  assistance  the^ 
wilted  at  once,  and  offered  to  take  the  par  y  over  for  not/ 

?a^tion  h  '  """'^^  f'^'  °^  -^^  gunboat  no^  Tthe  Alaska 
station  has  proved  most  potent  on  more  than  one  occasion 
It  IS  an  admirable  substitute  for  the  garrison,  which  was  a 
needless  expense  and  only  made  trouble 

The  typical   native  house  is  a  one-roo-n  affair  h„;if  «* 
upright  split  slabs,  with  a  door-way  in  froM  ^nd  .  c         ^ 

gnmywith  smoke;  the  pots  and  keS;  smeared  wTth''« 
conglomerate  of  grease  ;  nothing  seems  eveno  have  been 
washed.     Every  thing  is  foul  and  squalid,  and  the  sirios  o 
dried  meat  and  fish,  the  oil  bladders  and  pe^s  hunXeJ 

^ent7  't^"'  ^'^  "^^^^^'^^  °^  degradation  n  the  midst  o 
t^hre?or  TourT'  P?^^"^'°"^  houses  in  the  count?;  with 
tnree  or  four  exceptions,  are  those  at  Wraneell    %llZ^i 

?^^fnf'?^"^°  -T  ^"  dimensior;3,  one  storj^hlgh  Sit  of 
oSi^H^H'"^  ""^  the  outside,  nicely  whitewasLd,wi\hgab?e 
roof  and  doors  and  windows.     They  never  have  chimnev- 
The  fire  is  built  in  the  center  of  the  smooth  earthen  S" 
and  the  smoke  escapes  through  a  flat  cunoh  in  fh«        J' 

family  history  and  r3howing  the  family  cesrSe  ft  be 
bear  beaver,  eagle,  shark,  whale,  wolf,  frog  or  raven  To 
injure  one  was  to  msult  the  familv  to  which  it  beloncred  -to 
cut  one  down,  an  unpardonable  offense  InciSallv'  I 
may  be  mentioned  that  descent  is  reSned  throu.^Ve 
fema  e  line  and  it  seems  to  prevail  throughout  the  ^Norf  J 
American  tribes,  a  custom  which  is  probably  of  verv  ancLnt 
date.  1  hese  totems  have  their  counterpart  in  Syctured 
To  ol"/t'V"'^  """P-'^'"'^^  °f  ^he  Indians  othSn. 

sTaX7'o'n:7rir:;::;r:^'^'"  ^^^-^  ^^^  ^-^^^ 

"  been  in  the  wet,  gray  dawn  of  early  morning,  as  I  first 


|;|f|'i;i::i 


B6 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


saw  them,  they  have  a  most  weird  and  strange  appearance  ; 
for  the  ravens  which  are  carved  upon  them,  the  whales  and 
the  bears,  are  all  of  huge  proportions,  and  have  a  most 
melancholy  way  of  glaring  down  upon  all  who  stand  gazing 
at  the  barbarous  relics." 

But  the  totem  poles  are  becoming  weather-beaten  and 
time-worn.  The  paint  is  nearly  off,  never  to  be  renewed, 
and  the  pride  of  ancestry  and  achievement,  as  manifested 
by  visible  testimony,  seems  to  have  vanished  with  the  pre- 
ceding generation.  In  many  cases  similar  devices  appear 
upon  the  tombs  of  the  dead.  Around  the  four  sides  of  the 
interior  of  these  houses  is  a  raised  platform  several  feet 
wide,  the  rear  portion  of  which,  opposite  the  entrance,  is 
partitioned  into  state  rooms  and  scree  d  by  curtains  of 
cotton  or  woolen  stuff.  On  either  sidv,  of  these  sleeping 
apartments  are  slabs  of  heraldic  devices  fixed  to  the  walls. 
The  best  houses  have  modern  stoves,  furniture,  crockery 
and  kitchen  utensils,  and  are  very  clean  and  comfortable 
throughout.  There  is  always  a  variety  of  traps,  guns,  nets, 
fishing  implements,  harpoons,  spears,  decoys  for  catching 
seals  and  all  kinds  of  fur  animals,  birds  and  sea  fowl.  The 
families  have  ample  supplies  of  oil  suits,  rubber  boots, 
blankets,  miscellaneous  clothing,  and  even  orna...ents.  No 
simple  people  were  ever  better  •' fixed  "  ;  and,  as  I  have 
stated,  their  capacity  for  improvement  and  adaptability  to 
new  and  better  methods  of  living  and  doing  is  very 
marked. 

If  some  master  of  the  aesthetic  school  could  only  instruct 
them  properly,  what  beautiful  designs  they  might  contrive 
in  mats  and  rugs  and  shells  and  carving,  and  how  hand- 
somely they  could  embellish  their  homes  !  They  have  not 
only  good  taste,  but  a  natural  genius  which  could  be  culti- 
vated to  marked  advantage.  Their  preference  for  the  gro- 
tesque manifests  itself  in  all  their  ornaments  and  imple- 
ments, their  cooking  utensils  and  their  costumes  ;  and 
there  is  scarcely  an  article  of  adornment,  use  or  wear 
which  is  not  elaborated  with  studies  in  natural  history,  some 
literal  and  others  fanciful  and  ridiculously  distorted.  A 
good  many  devices  are  simply  heraldic,  corresponding  to 
those  seen  on  their  totem  poles,  like  the  family  crests 
paraded  on  the  panels  and  dinner-service  of  people  in  a 
higher  state  of  civilization.  They  have  elaborate  chests 
and  boxes  of  red  and  yellow  cedar;  spoons  and  dishes 
made  from  the  horns  of  the  mountain  goat  and  sheep,  set 
with  mother  of  pearl  obtained  from  the  snells  of  the  abe- 
lone  ;  trays  of  wood  and  stone  highly  polished  and  wrought 


INDIAN  CHIEFS  (HYAS-TYEE). 


.   u 


■ 


f^'^W 


I 


HOME  OF  THE  SIWASH. 


89 


hrd.     For'ZV  hlr-  f  ""'"?•  "^^^  »"pTaited  by' 
blankets  etc    and  „3  "'™"  '^^    "^"'"'^    ''<""  <=^li<:o. 

Finally  they  manufacture  a  beastly  intoxicating  liquor 


i: 


I! 


mmmm 


m 


90 


OUH  J^TEIV  ALASKA. 


from  molasses,  called  Hoochinoo,  the  equal  of  which  for 
vileness  is  hard   to  find  anywhere. 

Like  many  other  people  with  more  sense,  they  have  an 
inherent  passion  for  gambling,  in  the  prosecution  of  which 
the  popular  implements  are  polished  ivory  or  bone  sticks 
about  the  size  of  a  pencil,  which  have  their  respective 
values  and  uses,  best  known  to  the  initiated. 


INDIAN  H0UK3S  AT  WRANGr>LL. 


GOOD  INDIANS. 


indigenous  nroducts^==     t^f  separated  climate:;  and 
bo.h^.f Te  ^oas^ani  ofthe  ^for't  'fa'r  af  ."'  ^'^=^='' 

?avo\"birwi'h  ^e  status'frr"^  civilization  which  compares 
centCoLT^^iH  iff!,  ^?^"^^''^"  communities.  Vin- 
cent  L^olyer  said  :  "  I  do  not  hes  tate  to  sav  that  if  thrll 

quarters  of  the  natives  of  Alaska  were  Ir   ded  in  New  Yort 

ctirive  at  tnat  port.     In  two  years  they  would  be  admitt^H 
to  cuizenship.  and  in  ten  years  some  of  their  children  under 

whites  aLd  in   hJ^^^  ""'  uP^'^'l^y  ^"  the  costume  of  the 
wnites,  and  m  the  towns,  where  there  are  shoos  and  Ktnr^V 

rocirsTnd"hef;''  '^'"r  ^'^  ''''''  P-^-^fe  falirsTn 
irocks  and  headgear.     In  complexion,  they  are  olive  rather 
than  red,  not  unlike  a  seafaring  man  or  a  worker  on  a  farm 
and  many  of  the  men  wear  beards.  The  Hon  fames  GSwrn' 

ZT^^^'f'"'  i^  l^'  Smithsonian  Institut?oraTpor^Town 
send.  Wash    who  has  made  a  special  study  of  Pacific  co^st 
ethnology,  thinks  the  whole  population  up  to  the  Arct  c 


I  t 


'M 


99 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


'm\ 


belt  have  a  common  origin  among  the  Aztecs,  and  attempts 
to  establish  this  position  by  demonstrating  an  identity  of 
many  generic  words  common  to  both  languages,  and  by 
similarity  of  features,  implements,  handiwork,  carvings  and 
religious  emblems  and  ceremonies.  One  strong  corrobora- 
tive C(jincidence  rests  on  some  old-time  silver  idols,  which 
are  quite  identical  in  size,  feature,  and  figure  with  the  Chir- 
iciui  idols  of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama.  Capt.  Ueardslee,  U. 
S.  N.,  who  has  likewise  carefully  investigated  the  subject, 
sustains  Mr.  Swan,  so  far  as  respects  the  tribe  of  Hydahs,  who 
are  exclusive  occupants  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  in  lati- 
tude 51  deg.,  but  regards  all  other  coast  tribes  as  of  Asiatic 
origin.  He  thinks  the  Hydahs  were  driven  north  by  Cortez 
during  the  Spanish  invasion.  Diametrically  opposite  is  Mr. 
Newton  H.  Crittenden,  in  the  West  Shore  Magazine  pub- 
lished at  Portland.  Or.,  who  infers  from  incidental  evidences 
that  the  Hydahs  are  castaways  from  Eastern  Asia,  who, 
first  reaching  the  islands  of  Southern  Alaska,  soon  took  and 
held  possession  of  the  Queen  Charlotte  group.  Mr.  Edward 
Vining,  in  his  new  book  entitled  "  The  Discovery  of  Amer- 
ica ;  or  the  Uncelebrated  Columbus,"  inclines  to  a  Chinese 
origin  and  reiterates  the  story  from  the  original  Chinese 
sources  of  the  landing  of  Hwin  Shin  and  a  party  of  Bud- 
dhist monks  on  the  coast  of  Mexico  about  the  year  500  a.d. 
The  spot  marked  out  is  about  20,000  Chinese  miles  east 
from  Kamtchatka.  There  is  also  a  record  that  the  indi- 
genous populations  reached  a  high  degree  of  civilization. 
The  houses  were  small,  and  of  wood  ;  stone  dwellings  were 
not  known.  The  people  knew  how  to  write,  and  used  a 
paper  made  from  cotton  wool.  They  wore  garments  of  fine 
linen.  There  was  no  iron,  but  copper,  gold,  and  silver 
existfd  in  large  quantities.  Also  the  fact  is  on  record  of 
the  Spaniards  finding  at  Quivisa  the  wrecks  of  large  ships 
which  Mr.  Vining  feels  assured  were  of  Chinese  origin. 
The  Hurons  also  had  a  tradition  that  ages  ago  their  ances- 
tors were  visited  by  beardless  men  clad  in  silk  and  wearing 
pigtails. 

There  is  assuredly  a  strong  facial  resemblance  between 
the  ChiniS'.*  coolies  now  living  on  the  coast  and  some  of  the 
native  Indians.  They  seem  to  affiliate  naturally,  and  to 
have  some  few  words  of  common  derivation.  It  is  also  true 
that  there  are  Alaskan  words  of  Aztec  construction,  espe- 
cially those  having  the  terminal  "  tl "  and"xtl."  With 
regard  to  the  Hydahs,  they  certainly  have  a  remarkable 
physical  and  intellectual  superiority  over  all  the  other  Paci- 
fic coast  Indians,  while  marked  contrasts  in  the  structure  of 


GOOD  INDIANS. 

other  No^th  Ame  S^^^^^  ^"V 

in  the  manufacture  of  fi.hr  .^'^  P*'"^'^  ""'^  engaged 

and  they  have'L"  '  Istan^'r^r"-^ '"'^^  ""^  scientific  sctle, 
proper  to  state  that  h  s  tHbT  '^r"h  r'"^  '''^^"?  P"^''  ^^  '^ 
detachments,  is  auadild  m  «  v^ '')^  f'^'^'^P^'""  "^  small 

Alaska,  being'^tuS':'shl"c^^;:iee^turh''oVthe  T^  t' 

ment  in  cultimi^^  frienZ  f'llT"^  by  the  British  govern- 

ting  them  to  employmen  s  s^ft'd^o'';  •"•  '^•"'".•""^  ^'^"^^- 
tastes.     The  iMan  ,f  fhf  iv.   u         °  '*'^'''  '"clmation  and 

to  recogn^^ze  the  Indian  ti^lehnt^'^'r"'"'"'  ^^^  ^^^"  "^^^^ 
prized  by  the  Indi'fnVhiv  "k  ''^'^^'"  *'^^^^  ^^  'a"^  '"ost 
exclusive^use  whi^e  at  he  ILT  appropriated  to  their 
understand  that  hef  must  earn  tl^Hr  '^'^-^-"''^  "^^^^  *« 
as  the  white  men  they  s^warr^.nH  h  """,  ''•'^'"^  *'^^  ^^me 
know  that  this  vLw  is  likdv  to  o.  /""'  •  l^ ''  g'-at'fying  to 
and  to  govern  o^  "wn'pc^.il^traftr'  Y^'r^^'^f ' 
allowed  that  the  Indian  problem  in  the  United  ilT^^^ 
been  more  d  fficult  to  mpn',fr«  f-J    ,u      ^"''^^  btates  has 

once.     To  the  la  t  '  fh.  .  ;■    '^^'  ""^""r^^^  ^"^  "^^"«''s  all  at 

In  writmg  of  the  Indians  of  the  Pacffic  -oast    it  ic  n„, 

pecuiiaritieran'S^^ccup  ,  ot"i„'^'n.r/ l'„t' r"™^' 
mtermixed   by  marriacTp      if   Jc   ,  "'""V'"'  and  some  are 

inhabitants  of  ou?new^possession  l?^'   ^T''^''    '^^'  ^^e 
yji  uur  new  possession  are  much  more  degraded 


I 


I 


94 


0(//i  NEIV  ALAS/CA. 


and  generally  demoralized  than  those  of  British  Columbia, 
whatever  they  may  have  been  under  the  Muscovite  occupa- 
tion. Dawson's  b'jk,  entitled  "Indian  Tribes  of  British 
Columbia,"  gives  a  very  correct  idea  of  the  present  status  of 
the  British  Indians.  While  the  Russians  held  possession  of 
Alaska  they  also  exercised  a  conservative  and  fostering  care 
over  their  wards  under  a  similnr  policy  and  system  ;  but 
since  the  American  succession,  the  Inclians  have  been  left 
without  visible  control  or  guidance,  and  their  course  hns 
been  miserably  downward.  For  nineteen  years  their 
women  have  bren  the  special  prey  of  a  large  floating  popu- 
lation, and  both  sexes  suffer  a  great  deal  from  resulting 
maladies  and  consumption,  and  many  are  blind.  Old  age 
is  rare,  and  all  look  old  at  fotty.  The  Russians  established 
churches,  mills,  and  tradnig  posts  along  the  coast,  but  the 
agents  of  Uncle  Sam  have  let  every  thing  go  to  decay  and 
ruin,  and  at  the  capital  itself  (Sitka)  the  official  quarters  are 
located  in  buildings  whose  roof  and  gables  are  open  to  the 
weather,  and  the  foundation  timbers  nearly  undermined  by 
rot !  No  wonder  the  natives  are  laggards  in  the  race  of 
self-improvement. 

For  a  long  time  after  the  American  succession  they  main- 
tained a  hostile  and  often  aggressive  attitude.  With  all 
moral  support  and  conserving  influences  withdrawn,  they 
relapsed  into  partial  savagery.  For  many  years  there  was 
no  civil  government  whatever  in  the  territory.  The 
"  Shamans "  or  native  magicians  began  to  regain  their 
ascendency  over  the  people.  The  garrisons  stationed  at 
Sitka  and  Wrangell  kept  perpetually  drunk  on  home-made 
hoochinoo  ;  they  debauched  the  women  and  quarreled  with 
the  men.  All  industries  along  the  coast  were  paralyzed. 
No  business  was  done.  There  were  none  to  buy  the  furs 
which  the  hunters  had  trapped  and  collected,  and  utter  ruin 
seemed  inevitable.  At  present,  however,  thanks  to  a  com- 
bination of  wise  measures  and  ameliorating  influences  which 
have  extended  over  the  past  six  years,  the  country  has  set- 
tled into  serenity  of  hope,  and  good  order  everywhere  pre- 
vails. The  Indians  are  hostile  no  more.  They  have 
pledged  themselves  to  perpetual  amity  ;  a  consummation 
chiefly  efl"ected  through  the  instrumentality  of  a  wau-iuau, 
or  conference  held  with  the  hyas-joint  or  grand  commission 
of  1880,  at  which  the  first  condition  imposed  by  the  Indians 
was  "  teachers,  so  that  our  children  may  not  grow  up  stupid 
like  their  fathers  !  "  In  one  brief  hour  of  conviction  they 
spontaneously  abandoned  the  traditions  of  the  past  and 
never  looked  back  to  the  flesh-pots  of  barbarism.    Thty 


GOOD  INDIANS.  g^ 

nvTbrif.^nd"oc:?.'irf'".H'^"Pf  ''^^  "^^^  dispensation,  to 
wlnt^rl  Ll;  q"':i»'fy;heniselves  to  promote  if  All  thev 
wanted  was,  to  receive    t  undenlcd      Thesp  rnHinnc  i    ^ 

Chilkats  did  nc:  consider  fh^  r'  ^,i   nuii      .'         ,  ^  '"^ 
one   hundred  blarSs  Jsav  l:;t   .P''''""    '^""'^  ^"'^e 

we  e  perempS  invited  bvTh"' '°  '^''''^''  "''  <^°n>e«an,. 
settle  tlie  difficulty  withoaV  war  a^H  m  J!  ."m?'^  ""'  '" 

thirty  miles  dista„?romefcho,htr    sto  Sh"  IP  ^''?' 
anS  at  the  lower  CUfearvilir^fo^^^  th'/T  this  peninsula, 


96 


OUH  NEW  ALASKA. 


always  dominated  the  trade  with  the  interior  tribes,  it  is 
obvious  that  a  maintenance  of  friendship  and  amicable 
intercourse  with  them  was  all  important  to  ^  cure  the  pro- 
tection of  such  whites  as  were  prospecting  ni  the  far-off 
interior,  as  well  as  to  conserve  the  future  welfare  of  the 
entire  territory.  The  happy  result  of  the  conference  is 
thus  related  in  Capt.  Beardslee's  own  written  account, 
addressed  to  the  author  of  this  book  at  the  date  of  the 
occurrence.  The  vessel  which  did  duty  on  the  momentous 
occasion  was  the  N(  :th  west  Trading  Company's  tug-boat, 
"  Favorite,"  with  a  howitzer  in  the  bow  and  a  gatling 
mounted  on  the  upper  deck.  The  regular  naval  coast 
detail,  the  "  Jamestown"  lay  in  Sitka  harbor.     I  quote  : 

Pyramid  Harbor,  August  25, 
"  That  you  get  this  letter  may  be  a  sign  and  token  to  you 
that  succejs  has  crowned  our  efforts.  I  gave  in  yesterday 
afternoon,  too  restless  to  continue  my  summing  up,  and  in 
spite  of  my  prudent  resolution  donned  my  shooting  habili- 
ments and  started  across  the  trail.  About  half  way  over  I 
met  in  single  file,  first  Pierre  Errassan,  who,  with  his  hand- 
some six  feet  of  figure  arrayed  in  red  shirt,  leggins,  and  well 
revolvered,  would  have  made  a  capital  robber  in  Fra 
Diavolo  ;  and  behind  him  five  Indians,  the  foremost  of 
whom  I  at  once  recognized  by  descriptions  I  had  had  as 
Klotz-Klotz,  the  chief  of  the  Chilkats,  a  tall,  well-built,  dig- 
nified old  fellow,  from  whose  good  looks,  however,  a  wad 
of  cotton,  stuffed  into  a  hole  in  his  left  cheek,  somewhat 
detracted.  From  this  hole,  caused  by  a  gun-shot  wound, 
one  of  his  sobriquets,  "  Hole-in-the-Cheek,"  has  been 
derived.  With  him  was  another  veteran  almost  equally 
powerful  with  himself  and  much  older,  Klotz  being  about 
sixty  and  Kak-na-tay  about  seventy  or  more.  Both  wel- 
comed me  most  heartily,  for  in  spite  of  my  decided'y  unmil- 
itary  rig,  Errassan,  with  true  shrewdness  and  French  polite- 
ness combined,  drew  himself  stiffly  up  as  we  neared  each 
other,  and  making  to  me  the  most  profound  obeisance, 
omitted  to  offer  me  his  hand,  thus  paying  tribute  to  my 
greatness,  which  was  his  trump  card  with  the  Indians,  and 
most  gracefully  and  solemnly  introduced  me. 

*'  The  costume  of  Klotz  and  Kak  was  not  so  gorgeous  as 
to  add  to  my  discomfiture,  as  both  they  and  their  attend- 
ants were  arrayed  in  blankets  and  leggins ;  but  in  a  big  box 
carried  by  the  la'.ter  was  the  wardrobe,  in  which  he  had 
expected  to  astonish  and  impress  me.  The  retainers  were 
in  w;ir  naint.  with  cotton  or  down  on  their  heads,    which 


GOOD  INDIANS. 


97 


indicated    determination.     Thus  stripped  of  all   external 
show  or  power,  the  old  chief  and  I  sat  down  under  a  g  ea 
cedar  tree  and  discussed  the  situation.     J  think  that  this 
meeting  was  a  fortunate  one,  for  I  had  with  me"  cigars  and 
a  breech-loader  the  free  use  of  both  of  which  I  at  once 
accorded;  and  the  mfluence  of  a  large  meerschaum   pine 
which  some  months  ago  I  sent  him  as  a  present,   had   its' 
weighty    After  all,  if  the  true  history  ot  wars  and  diplomacy 
could  be  written,  how  many  times  such  little  matters  have 
had  more  weight  than  elaborate  speeches,  convincing  S 
their  utterer.     Free  from  disturbing  influences  Klotz^K^oz 

to"meX?  Jl^T'S^""  '"""^^^^'  interview'he  adm^°ed 
to  me  that  his  family  was  m  the  wrong,  and  that  he  would 

SS^r^^nf'^J  ^"  establishing  peace,    lie  claimed  that  the 
killed  Chilkoot  was  not  worth  a  hundred  blankets,  but  that 
he  would  pay  two  hundred  if  no  less  would  heal  the  breach 
n,Ch?       P?^S^.'"^d^'-  "^^de  Klotz  &  Co.  comfortable  for  the 
night,   and  this  morning  about  ten  o'clock  several  large 
canoes  with  flags  flying,  drums  (Indian  drums)  beating  and 
propel  ed  by  about  a  dozen  painted  paddlers    each   came 
around  the  point  of  Chilkoot  Inlet  and  were  shorUy  alonT 
side.     In  the  foremost  was  Danawah,  the  chief  of  the  lower 
village,  and  a  blind  old  Shaman,  who  is  chief  of  the  ChU- 
koots.      I  hey  were  directed  to  go  ashore  to  the  post  trader's 

th/Tlh"""""  ^""^  ""l  ^  8^""  ^'^nounced  theVeadiness  o 
the  Tyhees  to  receive  them.     They  refused  to  go  to  the 
tradet  s,  because  the  Chilkats,  their  enemies,  were  there 
but  instead  paddled  in  to  the  mouth  of  a  crek,  where  on 
the  beach  they  prepared  and  ate  their  meal  and  donned 
their    pow-wow  garments.     At   n   the  sharp  bark  of  the 
howitzer  summoned  them  to  the  meeting,  and  both  parties 
came  alongside  on  different  sides  of  the  boat,  and  avSng 
all  mtercourse  with  each  other.     When  duly  seated  in  the 
cabin  they  presented  a  not  undignified  appearance     All 
wore  good  American  clothes,  of  which  the  coats  were  orna- 
mented   with  more  or  less   insignia  of  various  ranks  of 
American  and   English  officers  of  both  army   and   navy, 
white  shirts  and  shoes  and  stockings.     On-  our  side  of  the 
table  epaulets  and  full  d.css  undoubtedly  produced  good 
Iho^i'  ,.]-^M"^«'-^'«^.asted  two  hours,  and  during  ifthe 
whole  d.fficul  y  was  adjusted,  and  when  we  left  the  stifling 
atmosphere  of  the  c«hn,-for  Indiai.,  .ven  of  high  rank  arf 

nnr^r/''  '?'  "P^'*^'  ^^'^  ^^  ^"«  ^  P^"y  of  friends  alt 
under  pledges  for  mutual  benefit.  Mine  to  them  was  in 
nnswer  to  the  request  of  both  parties.  « Yes:  I  will  do  mv 
uimosi  to  aaiiatyuu  m  this  mattec,*  which  matter  was  this'': 


98 


OUR  NEIV  ALASKA. 


"  When  you  go  to  your  country  please  tell  them  to  send 
teachers  to  us  as  well  as  to  the  Stickeens,  so  that  our  chil- 
dren may  not  grow  up  stupid  like  their  fathers."  (The 
Stickeer.s  are  the  Indians  at  VVrangell,  where  the  Presby- 
terians have  established  a  mission  school  which  is  doing 
much  good.^  I  bdlieve  that  they  will  keep  their  promises 
to  treat  well  all  white  men  coming  to  their  country,  and  I 
know  I  will  mine,  and  through  you  I  now  ask  of  any  Chris- 
tians you  may  have  among  your  readers— and  1  doubt  nut 
that  such  there  are — to  send  to  the  missionary  at  Sitka,  such 
articles  as  will  be  useful  to  the  school  which  Mrs.  Dickson, 
the  wife  of  the  post  trader,  has  started  on  her  own  ho(;k, 
and  at  which  half  a  hundred  children  are  being  taught,  and 
which  is  soon  to  be  transferred  to  a  neat  frame  building, 
which,  designed  for  a  store  at  Taku,  has  been,  by  Capt. 
Vanderbilt,  given  to  the  Indians  at  Portage  Hay,  and  on 
each  side  of  which  building  the  Chilkats  and  Chilkoots,  now 
re-united,  promise  to  build  villages  so  that  their  children 
may  attend  the  schools. 

•'  The  Indians  were  entertained  by  a  few  shots  fired  from 
the  howitzer,  and  more  by  several  volleys  from  the  gatling 
which  was  mounted  aft,  and  which  was  made  to  swt  ''p  an 
arc  of  one  hundred  and  eighty  degrees,  at  good  canoe  dis- 
tance. 

"Then  they  paddled  ashore  in  company,  lit  a  camp  fire, 
and  began  a  friendly  potlatch  on  the  beach,  and  we,  satisfied 
with  the  day's  work,  started  at  3  P.  M.  for  home,  as  we  have 
learned  to  consider  Sitka,  and  are  now  anchored  in  a  snug 
harbor  for  the  night. 

"  Yours  &€.,         L.  A.  B." 

"  Potlatch  "  is  a  term  of  varying  significance  applied  to 
any  assemblage,  for  whatsoever  purpose,  at  which  good 
cheer  is  provided.  Sometimes  a  native  will  invite  his 
friends  to  a  house-raising  and  give  away  more  grub  and 
blankets  than  ten  such  houses  would  cost  to  build.  Pot- 
latches  are  given  at  the  outset  of  great  undertakings,  and  in 
commemoration  of  the  same.  In  its  primary  sense  a  pot- 
latch is  a  gift.  In  its  expression,  as  an  economic,  or  social, 
or  moral  .orce,  it  amplifies  the  uses  and  applications  of  the 
customary  tobacco  pipe  in  all  grave  affairs  of  red-men.  It 
is  preliminary  to  weighty  councils,  social  entertainments, 
business  undertakings,  unexpected  meetings  of  old  01  new 
friends,  family  reunions,  celebrations,  special  ')l)servances, 
obsequies,  etc.  When  grave  complications  threaten,  and 
diplomacy  is  invoked,  arguments  are  invariably  re-enforced 


GOOD  INDIANS. 


99 


by  a  war  dance  or  a  series  of  dances,  in  the  course  of  which 
the  jarnng  factions  who  have  met  together  to  invesSe 
and  settle  the.r  d-iferences  (peaceably, tr  by  arms  endeavor 
to  impress  and  intimidate  each  other  by  extravagant  dis- 
plays of  costume,  menacing  attitudes,  hideous  noises 
uncompromising  yells,  consummate  braggadocio  and 
Illustrations  of  prowess  and  muscular  science'^if  an  omime 

before  lirvpnyn"'"""''  ""^^  "^.^^'''^  "''P""^"'  "^^y  ^^S 
before  he  ventures  upon  hostilities,  or  at  least  be  timorous 

on   the    field   of  battle.     The    full    significance  of  these 

methods  IS  presumably  understood  by  the  present  genera^ 

^on  of  natives,  though  the  young  men  do  not  appeaf  to  be 

well  posted  in  the   formula,  seeming  to  regard  the  whole 

demonstration  as  a  noisy  farce  ;  and  it  is  sefdom   1^^^ 

that  young  or  old  can  be  induced  to  illustrate  the  neS^ 

obsolete  customs    of  their  forefathers,   an  exhibition   of 

t'"^':irT^'^  ''^''''''  .^'^^  ^"'"^  ^"^h  mixed  imeres 
hlf/r  J"'^'    concerts "  of  their  progressive    white 

brethren.  However,  for  a  few  dollars  contributed  bv 
inquioitive  spectators  or  tourists  they  can  usually  be  oer^ 
suaded  to  do  the  proper  thing,  and  it^  has  ^.t  1 7  be  qSIte 

drfl  ,  r"'  '"'^'"  '^'  ^•'''  *^°  y^^'"'  f»^  excursionists  to 
drum  up  some  recruits  from  the  Indian  "  ranche"  at  Sitka 

to  give  a  war  dance,  or  some  other  dance,  on  the  oarade 

ftSal'^hef;  ^"';^'-P^-isations  are  obviously'not  a 

DO  latc^i  b, «'«i""T^'V''^  ^^'^  ^'  the  Chilkat 

potlatch  m  i88o.  The  form  is  to  build  a  huge  bonfire  in 
the  center  o  the  plaza,  and  after  a  sufficient  time  for  sSitL? 
ble  preparation,  the  maskers  appear,  marching  in  from    he 

aSfinTlf ''  '''f  ^^  ;l^  ^^''  °f^he  old  lu^sian  s7o  k 
ade,m  full  panoply  of  buckskin,  paint  and  feathen. 
singing  in  a  wild  weird  monotone 'wiJich  has  a  swS 

glow  of  the  bonfire  hghtf  up  their  painted  faces  and  fantas- 
t  c  toggery  with  the  lurid  tinge  of  Tophet  all  the  bv 
standers  catch  the  inspiration  and  join  the  chant  with  sway." 
ing  bodies  and  ever  kindling  fervir.  It  is  muclT  ike  the 
regulation  Indian  dance  which  most  eastern  readers  hive 
witnessed  at  the  "  Wild  West  Show  "  of  Buffalo  Bill  IS 
these  la  er  days-chiefly  mechanical  posturi,.,  and  pos  nL 
wi  h  wild  gestures  and  much  brandishing  of  weanons- 

theVre'lut'^i'^''  "''''^^^"  "^'  P«^«  -'  chasSround 
the  fire,  but  dance  in  a  single  row,  all  on  one  side    like  so 

c"iS'.f  h;'"- *^'  '°^-    ^^'^^^^  ^he'^  performance  no  thei? 
tr"r.!±TV.°..!:?"lPr.-^»^  -1^.t  I  have  seen  among 


♦K-   \/t       .  ■     V.     ^""T"'^  "'"•  wiiai  I  nave  se< 
the  Mountain  Crows  and  Sioux.     Mn-t  of  fh*=t-. 


tnetf 


lOO 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


faces  painted  red  with  dashes  of  black,  chiefly  on  one  side, 
and  they  wore  preposterous  head-dresses  of  cotton  waste  and 
goat  horns,  and  fantastic  ornaments  that  dangled,  feathers 
which  wabbled,  and  bits  of  metal  that  made  a  tinkling 
noise.  Some  wore  their  blankets,  and  others  more  meager 
costumes,  with  bodies  daqbed.  The  women  bound  their 
silver  bracelets  about  their  heads,  spread  wide  open  in 
crescent  form,  like  the  characters  in  old  mythology,  and 
the  firelight  glistened  on  the;r  polished  points  like  scintilla- 
tions from  the  moon  ;  but  a  pervading  odor,  whose  origin 
was  familiar  and  unmistakable,  added  a  substantial  realism 
to  the  scene. 

There  are,  perhaps,  thirty  thousand  Indians  in  Alaska— 
though  this  estimate  is  based  solely  upon  the  number  of 
tribes  or  bands  known  to  the  trading  posts  on  the  coast 
and  in  the  interor  ;  and  they  are  not  only  expert  in  their 
natural  gifts  oi  nunting,  trapping  and  fishing,  but  they  are 
splendid  navigators  and  seamen.  They  would  make  good 
soldiers,  surveyors,  coast  guards  and  policemen.  They  are 
very  efficient  help  in  the  salmon  canneries  and  oil  factories, 
and  they  make  good  mill  men,  miners  and  agriculturists. 

That  Indians  will  become  farmers  when  it  is  made  worth 
while,  is  shown  in  an  appendix  to  General  Crook's  report, 
whence  it  appears  that  during  1885  the  White  Mountain 
tribes  of  Arizona  iiad  2,120  acres  of  land  under  cultivation, 
raised  80,000  pounds  of  barley,  and  3,500,000  pounds  of 
corn.  They  sold  to  the  government  700,000  pounds  of 
hay  and  thirty-two  tons  of  barley,  and  had  1,000,000  pounds 
of  hay  awaiting  the  quartermaster's  order.  These  Alaskans 
are  natural-born  carpenters  and  workers  in  wood.  Some  of 
their  carving  on  wood,  bone,  stone  and  metal  is  exquisite, 
and  always  original  and  unique.  Their  permanent  houses 
are  one-.story  and  occasionally  two-story  frame  buildings, 
and  manv  of  hem  have  two  or  more  windows  fitted  with 
sash  ai.i  glass.  The  women  weave  beautiful  cloth  and 
blankets  from  the  fleece  of  the  mountain  goat ;  they  sew 
very  deftly,  embroider,  weave  hats,  mats  and  baskets,  and 
make  fishermen's  nets.  They  also  make  waterproof  cloth- 
ing from  tlie  intestines  of  the  moose,  bear  and  sea  lion. 
There  are  also  among  them  regular  artificers  in  metals] 
jewelers,  who  manufacture  the  silver  rings,  bracelets  and 
lip  ornaments  which  are  so  common  among  themselves.  If 
a  dollar  ever  comes  into  their  possession,  it  is  hammered  out 
at  once  into  ornaments.  It  never  goes  back  to  the  United 
States  Treasury.  Oh,  that  all  the  silver  dollars  could  be 
sent  to  Alaska  ! 


GOOD  INDIANS.  loi 

There  are  already  growing  settlements  at  Sitka,  Wrangell 
and  Juneau,  with  populations  aggregating  several  hundreds, 
and  lesser  communities  elsewhere,  at  all  of  which  native 
men  and  women  are  employed  in  every  sort  of  out-of-door 
and  household  capacity,  so  that  their  versatility,  industry 
and  mgenuity  have  been  fully  tested.  In  British  Columbia 
the  Indians  derive  a  considerable  income  from  their  labors 
in  various  occupations,  and  it  has  been  declared  that  but 
for  their  aid  several  flourishing  industries  would  cease  to 
exist,  or,  at  least,  labor  under  serious  disadvantages.  The 
inner  life  of  the  Alaskan  natives  is  extremely  interesting  to 
the  visitor.  There  is  every  encouragement  to  hope  for 
their  ultmate  absorption  into  civilization. 

Though  te.mporarily  under  stress,  they  can  be  redeemed 
and  rehabilitated.  Careful  Christian  training  of  the  healthy 
children  among  them,  and  a  conservation  of  the  unblemished 
adults  from  contamination,  will  restore  their  pristine  man- 
hood  and  usefulness.  Already  the  Rev.  Sheldon  Jack- 
son has  estabhshed,  within  two  years,  an  Indian  mission  at 
bitka,  whose  spacious  two-story  buildings,  and  surrounding 
premises,  with  male  pupils  in  gray  cloth  uniform,  are  very 
creditable  to  his  efforts,  and  whose  management  seems 
equally  so  to  an  outsider,  although  his  labors  have 
been  persistently  antagonized  by  local  officials,  to  whom 
obviously  some  personal  indiscretion  or  want  of  tact  has 
niade  him  obnoxious.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Young  have  charge 
of  a  mission  at  Wrangell,  using  the  old  buildings  which 
served  as  officeis'  quarters  and  barracks  when  VVraneell 
was  a  "fort."  The  Haines  mission  at  Chilkoot  is  very 
rlourishing.  ' 

At  Tongass  a  native  couple— very  nice  people  indeed, 
who  were  educated  at  the  Wrangell  mission— are  teaching 
an  Indian  school  which  has  an  attendance  of  forty-five 
pupils,  the  government  paying  a  salary  of  $500  for  their 
work.  A  number  of  young  Indian  men  attend  the  military 
school  at  Forest  Grove,  Oregon.  A  Mrs.  Macfarland  hai 
devoted  much  of  a  sojourn  of  eleven  years  to  charitable 
labor  among  the  girls  and  young  women. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  any  impediments  should  be  placed 
in  the  way  of  this  missionary  work,  by  whomsoever  done 
tor  it  must  continuously  be  kept  in  mind,  when  considering 
the  natives  of  Alaska,  that  they  are  not  listless  savages  un. 
tutored  and  wild,  but  that  they  constitute  a  valuable  indus- 
trial force  in  reserve— far  superior  to  negroes  or  Chinese— 
which  is  at  once  available  for  service  whenever  new  com- 

mercial  enterprises  are  established.     Vftt  i»  ia  a  H-r.i^.„Ki^ 

—  —  —  „  ^.  j^jj,.j jjyj^ 


'm 


I02 


0[//l  NEIV  ALASICA. 


fact  that  the  missionaries  have  many  adverse  influences  and 
obstacles  to  contend  with,  the  chief  of  which  I  believe  is 
the  ambiguous  attitude  of  the  general  government  about 
the  Indian  question.     If  Congress  would  make  the  natives 
eligible  to  citizenship  by  a  plan  of  probationary  prepara- 
tion, most  of  the  difficulties  which  now  surround  their  ad- 
vancement would  disappear.     As  with  the  schools  in  the 
East,  so  in  Alaska,  there  is  no  provision  for  graduated  pu- 
pils  except  to   return   them  to  their  homes,  where  they 
speedily  relapse  into  the  degeneracy  and  immoralities  of 
the  old  way.     In  the  case  of  girls,  it  is  easy  to  perceive  that 
those  who  have  been  trained  at  the  missions  to  habits  of 
neatness,  are  all  the  more  desirable.     There  has  been  not 
only  a  lack  of  sympathy  and  co-operation  with  missionary 
work  on  the  part  of  the  local  government  officials,  but  the 
Indians  themselves  are  interested  only  in  the  immediate 
pecuniary  gain  to  accrue,  so  that  ignorant  and  unprinci- 
pled parents  will  often  hire  their  educated  daughters  out 
for  immoral  purposes  ;  and  when  the  women  are  corrupt 
what  chance  is  there  for  the  morality  of  men  ?    The  best 
testimony  that  can  be  offered  to  demonstrate  the  disposi- 
tion of  the  Indians  to  receive  the  lights,  rights,  and  benefits 
of  Christian  civilization  is  contained  in  the  simple  appeal 
made  by  Chief  Toy-a-att,  at  Wrangell,  as  long  ago  as  1878 
to  an  assemblage  of  several  hundred  whites  and  Indians  • 
and  that  appeal  has  not  yet  been  regarded  !  Is  philanthropy 
a  sop  to  Indian  credulity  ?    Read  what  follows  :— 

"  Mv  Brothers  and  Friends  :     I  come  before  you  to- 
day  to  talk  a  little,  and  I  hope  that  you  will  listen  to  what 
I  say,  and  not  lauph  at  me  because  I  am  an  Indian.     I  am 
getting    old    and   have   not   many  summers  yet    to    live 
on    this    earth.     I    want    to    speak  a   little  of  the   past 
history  of  us   Sitka  Indians  and   of  our  present  wants. 
In  ages   past,   before   white   men    came    among    us,   the 
Indians  of  Alaska  were  barbarous,  with  brutish  instincts 
Tribal  wars  were  continual,  bloodshed  and  murder  of  daily 
occurrence,  and  superstition  controlled  our  whole  move- 
ments and  our  hearts.     The  white  man's  God  we  knew  not 
of.    Nature  showed  to  us  that  there  was  a  first  great  cause  • 
beyond  that  all  was  blank.     Our  god  was  created  by  us  ; 
that  IS,  we  selected  animals  and  birds,  the  images  of  which 
we  revered  as  gods. 

"Natural  instincts  taught  us  to  supply  our  wants  from 
that  which  we  beheld  around  us.  If  we  wanted  food,  the 
waters  gave  us  fish  ;  and  if  we  wanted  raiment,  the  wild 


GOOD  INDIANS.  103 

animals  of  the  woods  gave  us  skins,  which  we  converted  to 
use  Implements  of  warfare  and  Vools  to  work  with  we 
constructed  rudely  from  stone  and  wood  fHTre  the 
speake^r  showed  specimens  of  stone,  axes,  and  iea^ons  of 

tClx^Stf  ^''  ^°'^'"S'hem  up  to  view,  "  we  used  in 
the  nresent  r^/^'l''  ^^'''  h^^mers,  guns  and  knives  of 
tne  present  time.  Fire  we  discovered  by  friction  FHpri^ 
he  demonstrated  how  they  produced  fire  1  ^^'^ 

our  i?pim<=''°  w^  K^  ^^""^  ^  change  came  over  the  spirit  of 
not  th^    ,'  K^^  ^^•^^'"^  ^^^'■^  "f  'he  fact  that  we  were 

earth  WhS^""^'  '"  '^'  ^^^P"  °^  "^^"  ^^at  inhabiTed^h  s 
earth.    White  men  appeared  before  us  on  the  surface  nf  Vh^ 

t^heT  cTri'V"  '^'^^  '"^'^^  ^^'^^  ^«  ca'^ed  canoes.'  1^^^^^^^^^ 
dronn^H  f'  ^'°"5!  ^^  ^""^  "°^'  ^^^^  Supposed  that  they 
dropped  from  the  clouds.      The  ship's  sails  we  took  for 

coufdYvl'°"n^"'''  '■'"'' "^^  ^h^b^d^  o^  'he  a^r  they 
could  fly  as  well  as  swim.      As  time  advanced    the  whitP 

^Z^^LT''''^ r  ^T""''^  -^-'^oduced  among  u  every 
l^oild  U'  ^T^^'n^  ^y  ""'"''^  ^"^  'he  arts  of  Ian.  TheJ 
also  told  us  of  a  God,  a  superior  being,  who  created  all 
things,  even  us  the  Indians.     They  tol  1  us  that  this  God 

Jl^*  ^u^  r^^^"^  ''""^  ""^^  ^'■^  "«'  'he  same  people  that  we 
th/wh>  '^'■'^.^'^"^^°-  ^°"'^^'  «"d  association  wiTh 
toms  W^h"  ^'^'  """?S  "  ^^""^^  •"  °"^  habits  and  cus- 
ihr„,h)^  ^""^  '^^"  ''"'^  ^^^""^  °f  'he  wonderful  works  of 
the  white  man       His  ingenuity  and  skill  have  produced 

thtnT.'^'^S'-  ^^'.'^^/d^'^legraph;  and  thousands  Tother 
things.     His  mind  is  far-reaching  ;  whatever  he  desires  he 
produces.     His  wonderful  sciences  enable  him  ?o  under! 
stand  nature  and  her  laws.     Whatever  she  produces  he  im 
proves  upon  and  makes  useful.  "uuces  ne  im- 

"  Each  day  the  white  man  becomes  more  perfect  in  the 
arts  and  sciences,  while  the  Indian  is  at  a  stanr^-still     Whv 

rnS"  ^  iU'  ?''""^'  '^^  ^°^  y°"  have  told  us  of  s  a  white 
Sr  Him?  that  you,  being  of  His  color,  have  be.n  favored 

hel'rff ^f^/hi^^"'^^  ^^??^  ''  ^"'"'"S^-    ^«  have  seen  and 
neard  of  the  wonderful  thincrs  of  thu  u^ori.!  .^a  ^-:_- 


104 


0  UR  NE  W  ALA  SKA. 


to  understand  what  we  see  and  what  we  hear.  We  desire 
light.  We  want  our  eyes  to  become  open.  We  have  been 
in  the  dark  too  long,  and  we  appeal  to  you,  my  brotners,  to 
help  us. 

"  But  how  can  this  be  done  ?  Listen  to  me.  Although  I 
have  been  a  bad  Indian,  1  can  see  the  right  road  and  I  de- 
sire to  follow  it.  I  have  changed  for  the  better.  I  have 
done  away  with  all  Indian  superstitious  habits.  I  am  in  my 
old  age  becoming  civilized.  I  have  learned  to  know  Jesus 
and  I  desire  to  know  more  of  Him.  I  desire  education,  in 
order  that  I  may  be  able  to  read  the  Holy  Bible. 

"  Look  at  Fort  Simpson  and  at  Metlahkahtla,  British  Col- 
umbia.    See  the  Indians  there.      In  years  gone  by  they 
were  the  worst  Indians  on  this  coast,  the  most  brutal,  bar- 
barous, and  bloodthirsty.     They  were  our  sworn  enemies 
and  were  continually  at  war  with  us.     How  are  they  now  ? 
Instead  of  our  enemies,  they  are  our  friends.     They  have 
become  partially  educated  and  civilized.     They  can  under- 
stand  what  they  see  and  what  they  hear  ;    they  can  read 
and  write  and  are  learning  to  become  Christians.     These 
Indians,  my  brothers,  at  the  places  just  spoken  of,  are 
British  Indians,  and  it  must  have  been  the  wish  of  the  Brit- 
ish queen  that  her  Indians  should  be  educated.     We  have 
been  told  that  the  British  government  is  a  powerful  one, 
and  we  have  also  been  told  that  the  American  government 
is  a  more  powerful  one.     We  have  been  told  that  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  has  control  over  all  the  people, 
both  whites  and  Indians.     We  have  been  told  how  he  came 
to  be  our  great  chief.     He  purchased  this  country  from 
Russia,  and  in  purchasing  it  he  purchased  us.     We  had  no 
choice  or  say  in  change  of  masters.     The  change  has  been 
made  and  we  are  C(  vitent.     All  we  ask  is  justice. 

"  We  ask  of  our  lather  at  Washington  that  we  be  recog- 
nized as  a  people,  inasmuch  as  he  recognizes  all  other  In- 
dians in  other  portions  of  the  United  States. 

"  We  ask  that  we  be  civilized.  Christianized  and  educated. 
Give  us  a  chance,  and  we  will  show  to  the  world  that  we 
can  become  peaceable  citizens  and  good  Christians.  An 
effort  has  already  been  made  to  better  our  condition,  and 
may  God  bless  them  in  their  work.  A  school  has  been  es- 
tablished here  which,  notwithstanding  strong  opposition  by 
bad  white  men  and  by  Indians,  has  done  a  good  and  great 
work  among  us. 

"  This  is  not  sufficient.  We  want  our  chief  at  Washington 
to  help  us.  We  want  him  to  use  his  influence  toward  hav- 
ing us  a  church  bull*  and  in  having  a  good  man  sent  to  us 


'fffl5ff%r^ 


GOOD  INDIA  A'S. 


107 


7esu<r  AnH  "'  '°  u^\  '^^  ^'^'^  ^"d  •e^'-"  all  about 
Jesus  And  now,  my  brothers,  to  you  I  appeal.  Help  us  in 
our  efforts  to  do  right.  If  you  don't  want^  o  come  to  oir 
chu^rch  don't  laugh  and  make  fun  of  us  because  wTsing  and 

"  Many  of  you  have  Indian  women  living  with  you  I  ask 
you  to  send  them  to  school  and  church,  whereby  w  II 
learn  to  become  good  women.  D-  n't,  my  brothers  let^thm 
go  to  the  dance-houses,  for  thei .  they  will  learn  to  be  bad 
and  learn  to  drink  whisky.  ^^ 

I  wilVZI^K  ^  "f-  ^°"  ^'^  ^^"^"^  *''^d  °f  listenmg  to  me. 
I  will  finish  by  asking  you  again  to  help  us  in  trying  to  do 

nnfn  •  ^\T  "^  "'  '^^"'^  ^^'^^  astra/fromJhe  righ^t  path 
point  out  to  us  our  error  and  assist  us  in  tryini  to  re 
form.  If  you  will  all  assist  us  in  doing  good  and  quit  sell 
ing  whisky,  we  will  soon  make  Fcrt  wfangell  a  qu?et  place 
and  the  Stickeen  Indians  will  become  a  happy  ^Se  I 
now  thank  you  all  for  your  kind  attention.    Good-by  '' 


MEDICINE   AND  MYTHOLOGY 


While  cruising  in  the  Alaskan  archipelago  the  voyager 
often  discovers,  on  some  lone  islet  or  low-lying  point  pro- 
jecting from  a  headland,  what  appears  to  be  a  miniature 
house,  half  hidden  by  a  luxurious  undergrowth.  Somet-"nes 
it  is  whitewashed  and  sometimes  it  is  painted  in  gaud}  col- 
ors. Occasionally  it  has  a  little  window  in  the  side,  'as  a 
rule  it  is  remote  from  settlement  of  any  kind,  and  affords 
the  only  suggestion  of  human  occupation  which  is  seen  for 
miles.  Only  towering  mouncain  peaks,  pine-clad  and 
snow-capped,  and  tortuous  water  channels  intervene, 
and  there  is  usually  such  an  absence  of  animal  life,  owing 
to  the  physical  formation  of  angular  heights  and  fathomless 
depths,  that  ever,  the  scream  of  a  gull  seldom  disturbs 
the  solitude. 

The  stranger  wonders  at  the  apparent  preference  for 
isolation  for  any  purpose  whatsoever  ;  but,  after  having  been 
dulj'  informed,  he  learns  to  take  it  for  granted  whenever  he 
sees  them,  that  each  of  these  diminuiive  tenements  is  the 
mortuary  abode  of  some  "  Shaman "  or  Indian  magician, 
whose  supposed  supernatural  powers  have  not  availed  to 
avert  the  inevitable  grip.  Having  completed  the  mortal 
period  of  his  allotment  for  good  or  evil,  whichever  suits  his 
individual  caprice,  he  has  been  summarily  shelved,  as  it 
were,  by  those  who  care  to  have  nothing  more  to  do  with 
him  or  his  occult  dealings.  They  have  swathed  his  poor 
body  in  cerements  of  sail-cloth  and  mats,  covered  it  with  a 
dance  blanket,  and  laid  it  away  like  a  discarded  bundle  whose 
usefulness  is  done.  There  it  will  dry  into  a  mummy,  or 
molder  into  decay.  Nevertheless,  he  has  been  .cnqm- 
lously  provided  for  by  his  credulous  subjects,  who  have,  care- 
fully placed  beside  him,  within  his  wooden  domic  If  ■"  i  th 
properties  and  appurtenances  of  his  craft — nis  magic 
charm?,  hideous  masks,  grotesque  wooden  rattles,  fantas- 
tic toggery,  and  nameless  implements,  which  it  is  believed 
will  serve  him  in  some  new  embodiment  which  he  is  expected 
to  assume.  Formerly  these  relics  were  held  in  superstitious 
awe  by  the  natives,  and  even  the  burial  site  was  shunned. 


MEDICINE  AND  MYTHOLOGY. 


109 

logical  students  and  vrstor:'„™'rct;r ''  °"'\''''  ^**°°- 
natives  themselves  whose  rmWH,  1  ™''  '"" ''''  "^^ 
scrup^s  of  bygone  da;s"°rab?e'S'aa?i:L  "^^^°""=    '"' 

co^'n^df^^rh'sropti-iLTe^^^^^^^^^ 

which  they  can  not  comprehend   an^lv.,^  ",^  ""^^''^y 

t^S2^^  \    f ^^-.e^X^etTcoEn": 

st^ti-ristS'tnt  9-^^^^^^^^ 

rXtJ;o"nVfnrrm™E5"~'°™^^^ 
failure  and  \i^uZr^7^o^^,ll  Z^'T'  ^^  """^^'^^^  ^^e 
innocent  life  has  exDiatecT^n  .n       ^^^^ooses.     Many  an 

gone  by.  ^^,1^^:^^^^^^^ ::r^'zi:s  't 

sway  was  incontinently  cut  short  hi  r  \  I  f,  ^'=* 
1879,  when  he  interposed  to  orevent  ^L  ^^\  ^^^rdslee,  in 
who  had  been  accused  bv  lUnl?,^  mrrder  of  a  woman 
a  witch.     A  witch  used  to^.J.^^  "^  medicine  man  of  being 

his  rattle  at  him.     One  shaVp  m/n   •  •  ,P'     "^  shakes 

Siwash,  two  wiu'clear hta  o«"''  .'rtr^Se':-,?^ "J--^ 

ailments.     As  a  mpHinoi  ,^,.o^*•l■  ,        ^^'^^  ^'^^  bodi  y 

nostrums,  and  diS^arphysIc"  His  mlZ^  I"^,  "\'  ^' 
disease  away.  VVhen  sMmninnii  ■'  "'*  """nod  is  to  frighten 
himself  out  in  a  Mrh  Z?^?m  '"""^'^  "'  sickness  hi  rigs 
creasetheplllor^of  a  iLr  a/''''"  ?]'*«*""  '"^  i"" 
ei^.nityjUe4;^i^lre;:'fo  ^^^^^^^ 

Asiatic  origin.  "  '"*^  ^"<=  ^^^^'^c  coast  tribes  have  an 


ii^f^fftf^t"^ 


it 


no 


OU/i  NEW  ALASICA. 


An  appointment  with  a  niglitmare  would  not  require  half 
the  nerve.  The  patient  knows  just  what  to  expect.  He 
has  prepared  himself  to  be  frightened  by  a  long  course  of 
mental  enervation,  and  he  feels  that  it  is  merely  a  toss-up 
which  shall  stand  the  infernal  racket  the  longer  himself  or 
the  ailment.  In  fact  if  he  should  fail  to  be  frightened  at  all, 
the  enchantment  is  kultus—no  good— and  the  doctor  with- 
draws, a  mortified  and  disgruntled  Shaman. 

Such  dilemma  is  alarming,  but  the  medicine  man  is  pre- 
pared to  wrestle  with  it.     He  at  once  dons  a  frightful  head- 
gear of  mountain-goat  horns,  with  a  mask  of  hideous  device ; 
and  down  his  naked  spine  a  row  of  horns,  jet  black  and 
polished,    extends   in  abnormal  development  to  the  very 
base.     Long  pendants  made  of  dried  skunk-skins  and  as- 
sorted   intestines    dangle    from    his    head,    armlets    and 
anklets   equally    repulsive    encircle    his    shriveled    limbs, 
and  his  whole  body   glows  with  ocher    of  green,    yellow 
and    red.      Armed    with    a     huge     wooden    rattle,  fash- 
ioned in  the  form  of  a  stork,  with  a  demon  carved  on 
its  back  pulling  out  a  man's  tongue  with  its  teeth,  or  some 
other  collateral  symbol  still  more  repulsive,  and  carrying  a 
long  mystic  rod  or  wand  in  his  hand,  he  advances  into  the 
room  with  a  series  of  postures  and  jerks,  which  impressively 
emphaf  ze  his  aggressiveness,  overpowering  the  patient  and 
leaving  him  limp  and  paralyzed  with  terro"*.     If,  however, 
the  disease  should  prove  recalcitrant,  the  Shaman  seats  him- 
self  on  the  earth  in  the  center  of  the  room  with  his  back 
to  the  fire,  and  proceeds  to  beat  the  ground  with  his  stick, 
shaking  his  rattle  and  singing  with  all  his  might.     He  seems 
in  dead  earnest,  and,  if  there  is  any  thing  in  the  logic  of 
sympathy,  the  patient  ought  to  get  well  instanter.     But  death 
too  often  plays  the  stronger  hand,  carrying  off  the  victim 
and  the  malady  together,  much  to  the  disgust  of  the  doctor, 
who  is  very  apt  to  make  some  outsider  the  scapegoat  of  his 
bad  luck.     Quite  likely  he  marvels  that  men  should  die  at 
all.  and  it  must  be  even  a  greater  surprise  to  him  when  he  is 
called  to  sh-^ffle  off  his  own  mortal  coil ;  for  a  magician  so 
capable  to  heal,  and  to  forefend  death,  would  be  likely  to 
suppose  himself  exempt  from  the  common  fate.     But  the 
inevitable  end  comes,  and,  in  view  of  his  peculiar  relation- 
.ship  as  middleman  between  mortality  and  the  devil,  it  is 
little  wonder  that  he  is  buried  apart  from  his  people,  and 
that  the  site  of  his  grave  is  shunned.     In  something  of  the 
strain  sung  of  an  abdicated  monarch. 

He  sleeps  his  lost  sleep,  he  has  sprung  his  last  rattle, 
No  call  can  awake  him  to  mischief  a^oin. 


'MEDICINE  AND  MYTHOLOGY.  m 

houses  like  the  Shaman  vLtTnstead  o^h""^   '"   mmiature 
each  other,  the  houses  are TAnnln  ^eing isolated  from 

as  in  civilized  crm;nItier"PTt"sit'esTre"  cho^r^^^-^l' 
respect  to  nicturesnnp  attroof  ^  Chosen  with 

ridges  of  liJir/nd^ur:  fof  he  tZ'^'l  '""r"^'-  '>^''y 
near  Metlahkahtia  th/lnHi»!,:  rf  ^"°J«-    .0"  "  burial  island 

fir  trees  into  very  artistic  Sternr  ^^T\^  """"'"  "f 
ridge  lined  with Lvera  score  „,fi,  ^'""'  """^  ''»  '""S 
paimed  in  gauVcolors  and  L/  "'^^7'.'»<'""ary  receptaclel 
spersed  with  fancifu7.n?"^  arranged  in  parallel  rows,  inter- 
apex  of  eacS  one  of  wSch  iJ",  ?  '°  •"*"'"'  '''^'^=^'  °"  '"e 
denoting  the  cla"S  t  ^hS  the  dec^a^eS  be^rd  ""  n'-t«'^' 

cloth  standing  by  the  graves     Th7  "'  T^  ^^^J^'"^^  ^'^"o" 

interment  ha!  b'ee^a^o^e^d  Jot   he"  whtte  ^";tV°' 

•being  placed  in  the  earth  and  carved  slab!  set  tin  in  .  ^'^5 

headstones.     There  are  no  IP^VhVl  ?  ,  P  '"  ''^"  °^ 

agnatic  buria,  beneatrfhrwtet  iriLS^aZV-tn'S 

Tree-burial  is  more  in  vogue  in  the  intprinr  fhn«         *u 
coaot,  a  dry  goods  box,  sho!  box,  or  ev^n  a  ea^  "  1^      ? 

manufacturer's  mark  (DWl  in  M'   ''^^'""^  "^"  "'"•^i"^' 
With  so  many  various  methods  in  vom-     in  fi,« 

,^r1sttcrenieiU'-h;r5v^^^^^ 
_„....     .,.^.,,vcr,  r.  may  dc  said  with  regard" to  cremation. 


iia 


OUR  NEIV  ALASKA. 


which  has  long  been  the  popular  form  in  Alaska,  that  the 
natives  believe  that  the  souls  of  those  who  are  cremated 
turn  into  ravens.  The  raven  is  consequently  a  sacred  bird 
all  over  the  country,  and  is  never  molested.  He  is  known 
as  "  tilhkum '  (friend),  and  it  is  considered  a  good  omen 
when  one  of  the  dismal  creatures  is  in  attendance  at  a 
cremation. 

In  Sitka,  ravens  areas  numerous  as  buzzards  are  in  some 
bouthern  cities,  so  that  the  natives  have  no  lack  of   familv 
associations.     One  would  think  they  were  dead  heroes,  sure 
enough,  or  "/J>'aj-/y^r"  from  the  way  in  which   they  strut 
about  the   place,  and  the  independent  airs  they  assume  • 
yet  It  IS  not  obvious  at  first  thought  what  especial  advantage 
there  may  be  to  the  evicted  spirits  in  securing  the  embodi- 
ment  of  this  ill-favored  bird.     What  becomes  of  the  souls  of 
those  who  are  not  cremated  does  not  appear.     Doubtless 
they  abide  in  that  intangible  middle  ground  which  only  a 
tew  mortals  have  ever  been  permitted  to   explore     Two 
years  ago  the  Indian  "  ranche  "  at  Sitka  was  in  a  chronic  state 
of  disquietude  because  of  a  ghost   with  teeth  three  inches 
long,  which  was  said  to  have  been  seen  along  the   Indian 
river,  and  many  were  willing  to  offer  a  hundred  blankets  to 
anyone  who  would  capture  this  terrible  ghost,  which  was 
be  leved  to  be  that  of  an  Indian  lately  drowned  there,  who 
be  onged  to  another  tribe,  and  whose  body  was  not  crema-  ' 
ted  but  buried.     A  dead  slave  is  not  corKidered  worthy  of 
any  ceremony  whatever,  the  corpse  often  being  thrown  into 
the  sea.     I  here  was  a  death  and   obsequies  when  I  was  in 
bitka,  and  I  walked  one  morning  down  to  the  end  of  the 
Indian  ''  ranche,  "  as  it  is  called,  which  constitutes  the  out- 
skirts  of  every  white  settlement  on  the  coast,  to  examine  the 
remains  of  the  funeral  pile  where  the  cremation  had  taken 
place.     I    found  nothing  but  a  small  quantity  of  charred 
coals.     The  unconsumed  brands  had  all  be-n  carefully  car- 
ried away,  while  the  bones  of  the  corpse   had  been  picked 
out  and  wrapped  in  a  mat  and  laid  away   in  a  dead-house 
Some   of  these  houses  have  compartments,    and    are  the 
receptacles  of  as  many  as  a  dozen  separate  bundles  of  boms 
1  here  is  very  little  ceremony  now  at  a  cremation,  but   in 
earlier  times  a  bereaved  widow  was  subjected  to  a  good  deal 
of  cruelty,  being  repeatedly  thrown  upon  the  pyre  by  sym- 
pathizing friends   or  demonstrative  mourners,  and  seldom 
escaping  without  serious  burns.     Very  fev/  had  courage  to 
inflict  the  sacrificial  torture  upon  themselves.     Other  near 
relatives  displayed  their  sincerity  of  giief  by  various  bar- 
barous mutilations. 


I 


MEDICINE  AND  MYTHOLOGY. 


"c  carving,  and  color,  show  n^  the  P-enenlno-u  ^f  fv,^   « 

ceased  and  the  clan  to  which  he  belonged  tfLtun  at  f^^^ 
four  corners  of  thp.  <-r>.,rf      'I'u      "^'","t>^"»  ^^re  set  up  at  the 

body  sUst^s^ate  for  th     1  ^""WV"'^^^  "°^^^^^'  ^^i'^  the 
bier  hut  ilci.'         V  '^  .''^'''^  ^"^'^"  's  not  laid  out  on  a 

tne  ground  with  sticks  m  time  with  a  doleful  chant  Thic 
omo?  Ldoor  ..f".  h;'"""''  <"''•  A'^'TP-'eis  never  «k"n 
U    occupying  ,t  no  more  as  a  dwelling.     But  this  practice 

Slot  si'pj-:  %t~  tt:£B 

o?fi.';-  'cSarx.i..t^e  r; "'"  •'•"'--•^^  "^ 
prop  ffs'  iSuur^tcotHtsTsr  ^n°\^ 

anu  a  icw  ot  tne  Indians  remain  to  keen  the  fire  aliv*.  u,;fh 
t^^ie.r  long  poles,  while  a  bevy  of  sad  women  rnn?.ZL'.7;i'! 
Kaasuy  procedure  from  their  seats  on  the"  grass  "not  far 


ii6 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


away.  When  every  thing  is  consumed  the  relations  will  cull 
out  the  whitened  bones  and  level  the  ashes  decorously. 
There  is  no  odor,  and  every  thing  is  done  silently,  decently, 
and  in  order. 

It  is  customary  to  place  the  dead  man's  property  beside 
the  bundle  of  bones,  whic'^  represents  all  that  he  was  cor- 
poreally, and  occasionally  his  canoe  is  drawn  up  beside  the 
tomb,  allegorically  to  continue  the  voyage  of  life,  but  in 
fact  to  remain  until  it  falls  to  decay.  Of  late  years  inquisi- 
tive visiters,  as  well  as  avaricious  vandals,  have  robbed  the 
dead  houses  of  all  their  contents,  and  even  despoiled  them 
of  their  bones.  The  canoes  have  been  cut  up  or  stolen,  and 
the  sepulchers  otherwise  shamefully  desecrated.  Grass  and 
weeds  have  grown  up  inside  to  their  very  roofs,  and  if  a 
chance  stranger  attempts  to  explore  the  violated  precincts, 
he  finds  a  satisfactory  inspection  prevented  by  an  almost 
impenetrable  jungle  of  undergrowth.  And  all  this  neglect 
and  disorder  is  done  and  suffered  at  the  capital  of  the  ter- 
ritory,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  official  authority  to  interdict 
or  protest. 

Some  writers  on  Alaska  topics  who  aim  to  be  sensational, 
are  very  fond  of   printing   in   their  books   engravings   of 
totem  poles  and  idols,  and  obsolete  things  which  the  young 
natives  of  the  present  generation  regard  with  much  the  same 
interest  that  we  do  the  calashes  and  warming  pans  of  our 
grandmothers,   or  the  "one  horse   shay,"  and   credulous 
readers  are  apt  to  infer  therefrom  that  the  religious  condi- 
tion of  the  people   is  but  one   remove  from   heathenism, 
whereas  it  is  not  impossible  to  find   Christianity  in  some 
localities  nurtured  and   propagated  exclusively  by  native 
efforts.     We  who  took  umbrage  at  the  travesties  of  Charles 
Dickens  ought  not  to  underrate  or  misrepresent  the  poor 
Siwash.      For  myself,   I  prefer  to  write  in  behalf  of    an 
"  improved  order  of  red  men,"  quite  content  to  leave  the 
archaeology  and  mythology  of  Alaska  to  the   antiquarians. 
Doubtless  there  is  a  sort  of  morbid  interest  in  tracing  out 
the    hieroglyphs   upon   a   T'linket  dance-bliuiket,  and  an 
enthusiast    may  even  fancy  that  he  has   unraveled  some 
pious  analogies  from  their  mystic  woof,  but  he  who  is  accus- 
tomed to  read  the  heroics  of  the  red  men  of  the  plains  as 
they  are  pictured  on  the  rocks  and  sketched  with  pigments 
on  their  robes,  and  shields,  and   tepees,  will    find   in   the 
T'linket  blanket  but  a  simple  analogue  and  repetition  of 
the  oft-told  story  of  vaunted  prowess  ;  or  perhaps  a  shad- 
owy suggestion  of  some  familiar  thoughts  or  objects  or 
practices  like  those  we  see  on  the  bronzes,  fans,  and  screens 


MEDICINE  AND  MYTHOLOGY. 


searcher  after  knowledge  I  ™,h,t.  '""  ""=  '"8<=""°"s 
savage  in  these  modTrn  days  hi  ?r",?r  '°""^  PWSressive 
m  the  patterns  of  our  VVedge  JSd  "!■  ^!^H  "?"■'"""  ""'=^«' 

ning-fish,"  which  .impTe  naUves  i   is  S  h'r^  '^^  'V'^^u^" 

Sf  ^^^n^^h  Xh^S  thS  °^  ?^^^-^«^' - 
than  it  is  to  explain  the  ound  of  ^^'^^'''''''"-''  °^  '^'  ''^' 
by  the  swif^  paLage  of  the  electrical  EolT.  'V^t^  u^""^^^ 
limity  of  ignorance  is  \T^r^^  a  u '^  •,  ^^"^^^Y^  the  sub- 
To  the  unlutored  sava^^^^^  ""'  ^^'^  °^  ''''^°"^- 
ness.  courage  streS^^,„^^  '^^  structural  idea  of  swift- 
physical  attributes  ofmaniHT'""^  ""  '""^  "^^"'^1  ^'^d 
and  comprehended ^hrouah^^^'''*?''^'-^'"  ^^^'  expressed 
symbolical.  Their  mode!  nf^  ''"''i  ^^J"'^''  ^^'^^^  he  makes 
have  respecting  deprrSsnrt«°"^*'''n^"^  '^"  "°*^°"«  they 
way.     The  natfves  of  A  llf   L  '  ^'l  illustrated  in  their  rude 

control  the  e  Sons^f  vn^  '^"'  ^'^^  ^^^^^^ 

power  over  thTs^ro^EviwErff  '^^'   '^^^  have 

believe  in  transmfgration  and  in  f L  '"'""'  *''"'"•  ^^hey 
the  bear  and  raven  wS?r.  ^^^^"Pernatural  powers  of 
nia.  Probablj  the  esseni  of  r.-"'"^"' «"  ^>1  their  insig- 
linedinthefolowi^'Te  "Tdro^  'f'^T^.  ^^''^^  '«  °"t- 
once  an  active  volcfno  ^hth  ?<"!'  Jl^'!'^  ^'-  Edgecumbe. 
Wood,  in  one  of  the  h°.'rt  ?^  L'eutenant  C.  E.  S 

The  story  runs     "l^onJfmr  ""^  l^^  ^^^tury  Magazine. 
the  water,  and  the  wa  er  mJ.      T  '''"  T'"-^  ^^"^^  beneath 

so  that  no  man  coukfl  ve     It  ;aineTsnl''','l^'"^'P^^^^ 
if  the  sea  fell  from  the  skv      a  if        uf  ^f"^  ^hat  it  was  as 

.|;:or:tVrA?e°r /.^,^  S'-  -  ".e,  T'-inJits  =  on 


and  do  not  undeisimid  each 


Si 


(  .; 


ii8 


OUK  NEW  ALASKA. 


Other,     m   the   black   tempest,  Chethl   was  torn  from  his 
sister    Ah-gish-ahn-ahkon    [The-woman-who-supports-the- 
earthj.     Chethl  [symbolized  in  the  ospreyj  called  aloud  to 
her,    '  You  will  never  see  me  again  ;  but  you  will  hear  my 
voice  forever  ! '     Then  he  became  an  enormous  bird,  and 
flew  to  southwest,  till  no  eye  could  follow  him.     Ah-gish- 
ahn-ahkon  climbed  above  the  waters,  and  reached  the  sum- 
mit  of  Edgecumbe.     The  mountain  opened,  and  received 
her  into  the  bosom  of  the  earth.     That  hole  [the  craterl  is 
where  she  went  down.     Ever  since  that  time  she  has  held 
the  earth  above  the  water.      The  earth  is  shaped  like  the 
back  of  a  turtle,  and  rests  on  a  pillar  ;  Ah-gish-dhn-ahkon 
holds  the  pillar.     Evil  spirits  that  wish  to  destrov  mankind 
seek  to  overthrow  her  and  drive  her  away.      The  terrible 
battles  are  long  and  fierce  in  the  lower  darkness.    Often  the 
pillar  rocks  and  sways  in  the  struggle,  and  the  earth  trem- 
bles and  seems  like  to  fall  ;  but  Ah-girh-dhn-ahkon  is  good 
and  strong,  so  the  earth  is  safe. 

"  Chethl  lives  in  the  bird  Kunna-Kdht-eth  ;  his  nest  is  in 
the  top  of  the  mountain,  in  the  hole  through  which  his  sis- 
ter disappeared. 

"  He  carries  whales  in  his  claws  to  diis  eyrie,  and  there 
devours  them.  He  swoops  from  his  hiding-place,  and  ndes 
on  the  edge  of  the  coming  storm.  The  roaring  of  the 
tempest  is  his  voice  calling  to  his  sister.  He  claps  his  wings 
m  the  peals  of  thunder,  and  its  rumbling  is  the  rustling  of 
his  pinions.     The  lightning  is  the  flashing  of  his  e3/es." 

Even  the  whites  have  acquired  some  of  the  Indian  super- 
stitions.     There  are  credulous  people  who  believe  that  croc- 
odiles once  inhabited  Alaska  because  a  wooden  nondescript 
exists  which  somewhat  resembles  one.     So  also  because  the 
snake  is  a  favorite  pattern  for  bracelets,  they  believe  that 
snakes  once  existed  in  the  land,  when,  forsooth,  the  first 
design  was  furnished  by  a  chance  visitor  to  a  native  silver- 
smith who  began  to  manufacture  them  ;    and  when  a  San 
Jrancisco  sharp  discovered  how  great  the  demand  was  for 
them  he  sent  seventy  dozen  pairs  of   California  workman- 
ship to  a  trusty  Siwash  at  Sitka  on  commission.      Verily 
when  science  overleaps  itself,  the  ^.umble  is  precipitate,      f 
do  not  take  much  stock  in  the  mythological  significance  of 
the  multifarious  devices  which  are  inseparable  from  Alaskan 
handiwork.     Some  of  them  are  obviously  the  crude  expres- 
sions of  their  primitive  theology,  but  for  the  rest,  they  are 
the  mere  outcroppings  of  a  genius  of  deformity,  fable  and 
mcongruity,   which  is   their    inherent  propensity.      These 
natives  are   born  caricaturists,    manifesting    their    broad 


MEDICINE  AND  M YTHOLOG  Y.  ,  jg 

humor  in  every  thing  they  do,  or  make,  or  say  so  that  all 

heir  domestic  utensils,  their  ornaments  and  interior  deco 

rat  ons,  their  boats  and  paddles,  toys,  dolls    masks    attir^" 

groteTqltrrijt'f^  escutcheons,  Vre  often"oT'the'm"t 

induceTthr''^'''';  ;:  'f  '^^^'^^  that  some"^  wicked  Lgs 

"^^^^^"^^^^  ^^-'  ^^^y  hafSeithi;? 


INDIAN  GRAVE. 


1 1 


ALASKA'S  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


I  suppose  that  mining  in  Alaska  is  much  like  mining  any- 
where else  :  processes  are  similar  and  familiar.     The  most 
interes::ing  part  of  the  business  is  that  it  is  an  established 
fact.     The  mines  and  the  miners  are  there  ;  and  while  the 
incredulous  are  questioning  even  their  existence,  the  indus- 
trious and  hopeful  aie  busily  engaged  in  taking  out  the  gold. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  in  the  early  days  of  discovery  and 
prospecting  there  was  more  swindling  to  the  square  inch 
than  in  any  other  known  location,  but  swindling  was  made 
easy  because  the  "  stuff  "  was  there,  the  indications  were 
there,  and  pay-dirt  and  bonanza-quartz  were  there.     Officers 
of  the  army  and  navy  who  were  on  the  station  were  the 
principal  investors  and  chief  sufferers,  because  nobody  else 
had   any  ready  cash.      These    confiding    and    intelligent 
gentlemen,  who  were  on  the  spot  and  took  the  pains  to 
examme    for    themselves,     making     interminable    tramps 
through  the  wilderness  to  visit  quartz  ledges  and  placer 
diggmgs,  eagerly  "  blew  in  "  all  they  could  spare  each  pay 
day,  on  the  faith  of  their  own  investigations.     I  know  one 
officer  who  has  no  less  than  $2,500  so  placed,  and  I  believe 
It  IS  well  mvested,  inasmuch  as  it  is  judiciously  distributed. 
Want  of  capital  and   mechanical   appliances   have    made 
mvestments  unremunerative,  but  not  worthless.     As  soon 
as  ever  capital  was  forthcoming  the  mines  were  developed 
with  profits  more  than  remunerative.     The  largest  stamp- 
mill  in  the  world  has  now  been  in  active  operation  there  for 
nearly  a  year.     It  is  located  on   Douglas  Island,  opposite 
Juneau,    and    carries  one    hundred    and   twenty  stamps 
working  the  whole  year  round.     It  is  owned  by  San  Fran- 
cisco parties.     The  ore  comer-  right  out  of  the  side  of  the 
mountain  (which  rises  abruptly  from  the  ocean)  and  is  shot 
down  an  inclined  plane  to  the  stamp-mill,  where  it  is  treated  • 
and  vessels  drawing  twenty  feet  of  water  can  lie  right  along- 
side the  rocks  of  the  natural  shore  and  receive  their  freight 
not  a  hundred  yards  from  the  mill.     The  primitive  forest 
clothes  the  slopes  of  the  mountain  from  base  to  summit,  and 
fuel  IS  all  around  in  intimate  proximity.     No  plant  of  such 


ALASKA'S  MINERAL   WEALTH.  lai 

value  was  ever  erected  or  operated  at  so  cheap  a  cost     \t 

«x6  coo '^\°"''l^  was  half  a  , million  doS.  and  tha 
{^i6  000,000  have  been  refused  for  the  property  It  is  a  low 
prade  ore,  yielding  $5  to  $100  per  ton  cf  ^uanz  No  s  oSc" 
IS  or  sale.  The  first  gold-brick  came  out  in  July  isL  and 
weighed  297  ounces.  In  August  the  output  was  en ual  to 
|6o  000,  and  the  mill  is  now  reported  to  be  running  .p  to 
$100,000  per  month,  with  improving  prospects  It  is  sad 
that  Senator  Jones  of  Nevada,  whS  is  one  of  its  pr  ncioal 
fts?u?o'ifVu'T^'^^^°'°°°^y-^^°  his  inco'mTf  o'm 

prern.um,  although  the  mine  is  not  developed      Th L  vS 

eTuaUo'Thr  D  '"f"'^,  '^  '''  "^  ^^  '''  «--  -  "  sS 
cove  ies  hi-^       ^       f '^"'s.  ^'^^"^  "^^  ^"^  valuable  dis! 

ledge  near  Juneau,  and  at  Kilisnoo,  there  are  sad  fo  L 

market'^  Th  °'  °^^'  r'^^^^  ^^^^^^  ^ave  been  put' on  the 
nn    •^      ^'?  insulated  properties  so  far  pan  out  the  best 
On  the  mamland,  just  across  the  channel  from  DouHas 
I  land,  and  s,x  miles   back  from  the  shore,  in  the  hfar? 
of   the  mountams,  is  "  Silver  Bow   Basin  "   where   th.i 
are  stores,  blacksmith  shops,  boarding houes  and  tenemen  s 
out  \l'o^' T  n""''y  '"^"^^^  '"  placer  mining,  who  turn 
TttCte'dlreMTo^rS^^t^^^^^^^^ 
tr^!!in"  \S  ^'-'%   fo;?8lr°'The   aftitu^de-o 
J^^h  ttt  the^iit  rs^L^^  ifnr  xtfo^er  r*    1^  •  ^° 

Ind  hvHrr  i-  ^  ^""^  ^'''''^^  °^  sluices, expensive  viaducts 

—  — ^ 


¥• 


122 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


feet  in  diameter  and  four  feet  high,  with  a  hard  stone  floor 
and  an  upright  shaft  in  the  center,  which  carries  four  arms, 
like  a  clothes  drier.  At  the  ends  of  these  arms  heavy  flat 
blocks  of  stone  are  attached  by  chains,  and  as  the  arms 
swing  round  they  drag  the  stones  over  the  bottom  of  the 
tub  and  pulverize  the  quartz,  which  is  fed  into  it  with  a  due 
proportion  of  quicksilver  and  such  chemicals  as  the  nature 
of  the  ore  may  require.  The  machine  is  driven  by  a  simple 
water  wheel  attached  to  the  same  shaft  ;  ?  sluice  placed  a 
few  inches  above  the  floor  lets  off  the  waste  water,  the  pre- 
cious metal  uniting  with  the  quicksilver  and  settling  to  the 
bottom  of  the  tub.  There  are  two  of  these  contrivances  in 
the  Silver  Bow  Basin. 

These  mines  have  made  Juneau  quite  the  center  of  busi- 
nt."  in  South-eastern  Alaska.      There  are  possibly  three 
hundred  white  people  in  the  town,  which  is  most  romanti- 
cally situated  at  the  base  of  a  mountain  just  in  front  of  the 
entrance  of  a  cailon  through  which  a  beautiful  stream  flows 
in  a  series  of  cascades  and  perpendicular  leaps  to  the  sea. 
The  store  of  the  North-west  Trading  Company  is  conspicu- 
ous among  others,  but  there  are  good  restaurants,  two  drug 
stores  and  several  general  stores,  a  beer  brewery,  two  barber 
shops  with  hot  and  cold  baths,  a  jeweler's  shop,  blacksmith 
shops,  post-office  and  some  very  snug  dwellings,  nearly  all 
of  which  are   painted   and   look  neat.     Some  houses  have 
little  gardens  inclosed.     A   display  of  flags  from  three  or 
four  tall  staffs  shows  prettily  against  the  somber  background 
of  evergreens,  and  makes  the  place  look  gay.     There  is  a 
commodious  wharf  and  warehouse  for  the  stealer,   and 
usually  two  or  three  small  sailing  craft  and   numberless 
canoes  enliven  the  little  bighl  within  whose  curve  the  town 
is  principally  built.    But  there  is  besides  a  picturesque  prom- 
ontory at  one  point  of  the  arc,  with  cottages  climbing  the 
slope  among  the  trees.     A  ferryboat  runs  hourly  to  Douglas 
Island.     Two  Indian  villages  flank  the  town  on  either  end, 
with  a  combined  papulation  of  twelve  hundred  or  more  in 
the  winter  time  ;  in  summer  their  men  are  chiefly  employed 
at  the  mines,  but  there  is  always  a  goodly  number  of  them  on 
hand  to  handle  freight  when  the  steamer  arrives.     Many  of 
them  earn  $2.50  per  day  at  the  mines,  and,  although  there  are 
a  few  Chinese  at  work  in  the  basin,  these  are  preferred,  being 
generally  larger  and  much  stronger   and   better    able  to 
handle  heavy  tools  and  big  loads.     Tradesmen  earn  from 
$4  to  $10  per  day,  but  continuous  employment  is  uncertain. 
There  is  a  beaten  trail  over  the  mountain,  made  at  a  con- 
siderable cost,  and  the  Indians  have  carried  over  it  on  their 


ALASKA'S  MINERAL   WEALTfi.  123 

backs  every  thing  whatsoever  that  has  gone  to  the  mines 
This  service  they  pertorm  at  the  uniform  rate  of  onrcent 
per  pound. 

^rZ^^x^^  attorney's  fees  ever  paid  in  Alaska  were  to  Dis- 
tnct   Attorney   Haskett,  m  gold   dust,  from  this  « basin  - 
Last  year  I  went  up  to  the  mines  in  company  with  him  and 
his  ch.ef  partner,  Mr  Powers,  who  had  large  claims  there 
and  now  by  strange  fatalities  both  are  dead 

About  sixty  miles  from  Juneau  is   the  Chilkat  country 
which  Captain  Beardslee  succeeded  in  opening  to  mine^sTn 

i  m°ed    2"^t'ka'l  r^^--^^^    -^  '   P--inent   chiS 
named       Sitka  Jack,     whom   he  sent   into  the    interior 

^nH^l'Tr^"''^?'  ^u?^'^  ^"  ^"  'he  self-sufficiency 
and  authority  of  a  blue  frock-coat,  brass  buttons,  a 
colonel  s  stripes,  a  navy  cap  with  gold  band  and 
devce,  and,  I  believe,  a  sword.  He  remained  all 
winter  dispensing  good  cheer  liberally  from  village  to  vil- 
lage,  and  when  he  returned  in  the  spring,  the  up  country 
natives  said  it  was  <;all   right ;  the  whife   peoj^e    might 

f^^  ' .  Sf^^P"""'  '"/^^''  ^  schooner  immediately  out- 
fitted  at  Sitka  to  start  for  Chilkat.     Jack  lives  at  Sit'ka  in 
one  of  the  best  houses  in  the  "  ranche,"  white-painted,  with 
windows,  green  blinds,  porch  and  veranda,  and  it  is  said  he 
IS  worth  ^10,000.     Ke  is  industrious  and  shrewd,  and  be- 
sides working  m  the  canneries,  picks  up  a  good  deal  of 
money  in  "little  odd  jobs."    One  summer  he  made  $300 
in  the  cannery  alone      From  Lynn  Channel  and  Chilkoot 
thi'^'  ' '°. ""  '!  northeast  of  Sitka,  there  are  four  passes  over 
the  mountains  to  a  chain  of  lakes  150  miles  long,  which  form 
the  head  waters  of  the  Yukon  ;  the  best  of  which  passes  2^ 
miles  in  length,  was  selected  by  Lieutenant  Schwatka  for  hii 
explormg  tour,  already  referred  to  in  this  volume.     Valu- 
able mineral  discoveries  have  been   made  on  the  banks  of 
the  river,  and  I  have  reliable  information  that  one  miner 
has  staked  out  a  claim  on  a  vein  of  gold-bearing  quarfz  six 
hundred  feet  wide.  In  his  report,  Lieutenant  Schwatka  says: 
.       The  d  Abbadie,  [a  tributary  river  of  the  upper  Yukon! 
is  important  in  an  economical  sense  as  marking  the  point  at 
which  gold  in  placer  deposits  commences.     From  here  on 
nearly  to  the  mouth  or  mouths  of  the  great  Yukon,  a  panful 
of  dirt  taken  from  almost  any  bar  or  bank  with  any  discre- 
tion will  give  several '  colors,'  in  miners'  parlance  '' 

This  gold  has  been  ground  out  of  the  far  away  mountains 
by  the  rasping  glaciers,  and  deposited  with  the  gray  glacier 
mud  which  IS  brought  down  by  the  streams  from  fhe  ice 
fields.   It  IS  probable  that  all  the  environment  of  the  mount- 


124 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


ains  which  inclose  the  great  central  plateau  of  the  Yukon 
IS  rich  in  minerals.  Schwatka  mentions  having  discovered 
a  party  of  American  miners  already  at  work  on  the  Stewart 
River,  where  they  had  found  good  prospects  ;  and  since 
the  sprmg  of  1886  opened  several  hundred  miners  and 
prospectors  have  found  their  way  ac-oss  the  Chilkat  trail 
to  the  diggmgs,  which  seem  to  grow  richer  the  more  they 
are  developed. 

The  mines  about  Sitka,  valuable  and  innumerable    as 
they  are,  have  remained  unproductive  until  the    present 
year,  but  now  the  -'chest  gold  claims  yet  discovered  are 
bemg  sys..  matically  developed  by  a  company  competent  in 
all  respects,  wLich  was  incorporated  in  November,  1885 
under  the   laws  of  Wisconsin.     It   is   called   the  "Lake 
Mountam    Mining  Company,"  and  its  president  is  C.  A. 
Swmeford,  brother  of  the  present  governor  of  Alaska.     B.' 
K.  Bowles,  of  Baraboo,  is  secretarv,  and  M.    C.  Clarke 
cashier  of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Madison,  treasurer' 
Nicolas  Haley,  the  old  pioneer  prospector  of  Alaska,  is  a 
large  stockholder.*      The  company  has  abundant  capital 
and  began  work  early  last  February  with  all  requisite  tools 
for  engmeering,  mining,  assaying,  etc.     In  May  they  had 
begun  working  the  placers,  and  had  erected  wharves  and 
warehouses  at  the  head  of  Silver  Bay,  some  four  miles  dis- 
tant  from  Sitka,  on  Baronoff  Island.     They  had  also  driven 
a  tunnel  into  the  quartz  ledge  with  a   view   to  the  early 
erection  of  a  stamp-mill,  to  be  operated  ..t  the  earliest  day 
possible.     The  property  of  the  company  comprises  several 
of  the  most  valuable  of  the  Haley  claims,  from  one  of  which 
this  indefatigable  miner  obtained  an  ounce  of  ^old  daily  for 
a  long  period,  by  simply  crushing  the  decomposed  quartz 
in  a  mortar,   treating  it  with  mercury.     These  claims  are 
respectively  known  as  the  Lucky  Chance,   Porphyry  Clcve- 
j^"d   and    Nickel   lodes,   and  the   Haley  &   Sons  Placer. 

*•'  Nicholns  Haley,  a  practical  miner,  has  been  about  th^st  slan- 
dered  man  in  this  vicinity.  lie  had  up-hill  work  to  obtain  credence  to 
his  tales  as  to  ihe  richness  of  Alaska  in  fjold.  It  was.  I  rememh.r,  fuliv 
explained  to  me  in  San  Francisco,  that  Haley  was  a  fraud  ;  that  ore  from 
ither  regions  was  brought  up  here  and  mines  salted,  so  as  to  m;'ke  a 
rush  whuh  would  benefit  the  ring  of  which  Haley  was  ringleadei,  and 
with  a  fortune  at  his  control.  The  man  has  struggled  on  in  poverty 
persevering,  and  at  last  his  upward  turn  has  come.  Williin  a  month  he 
has  soul  to  Sm  Francisco  parties,  who  at  last  came  up  to  examine,  over 
seventy  thousand  dollars  worth  of  ledges,  and  still  owns  enoueh  to  keen 
him  rich.  If.  as  I  believe  they  will,  the  mineralogical  rcM.urces  of 
Alaska  bring  her  into  prosperity  au'.nin.  its  citizens  should  nlwnys  do 
honor  lo  this  miner  to  whom  they  will  owe  It."— fCaM  Z.  W  Beards. 
lee  m  Forest  and  Stream. 


s^ 


I 


ALASKA'S  MINERAL   WEALTH  ,27 

Official  assays  of  specimens  of  quartz  takpn  =,t  ,=„j 
therefrom  shov,  from  |,4;.0o  ,0  S^J/o   per  ton  "  """""^ 

duH^n^glh" 'Stst'o^sf-  H-  »^° --<>"">«  Saskastation 

™ni„|  l'plrSLl„".he'^vid  -Itf  ^r  Si^k?7u'rU;';'e%^  °' 
sian  occupation,  and  up  to  the  vearTRSnL^^^  *^^  ^"^■ 

Its  editor,  and  continued  throughout  the  yea?UowU 

erill  ^:^e^  .t^  ag^o^Trou^rrf^o^  "  ^^f^^^^ 
the  Indian  fur^  hunters  bu  iervT^l  ^.'°  *™'  ^^ 
paid  to  them  until  the  ye^^  8«  when^h.  p'"'-°"  ^'"' 
ernment  sent  an  engineeroffice?i  exarn  n.  ^n'"'"  ^^^^" 
gate  into  the  mineral  resources  of  the  country     A, Z'^'l" 

his  time  at  Sitka  in  "  potlatch  "  and  d.noi^     ''^^^  P^^t  of 

his  report  was  unfavorable  ■  and  from  fh^i-  ,iof        T^   .  ' 

transfer  of  the  territory  to  the  Unite?  Stl.     ^^^''  '^^ 
done      In  fn^f    fj,»  "^.y  '■^' ""^   united  States,  nothing  was 
oone     m  fact,  the  Russians  were  after  fur.  and  not  trnid 
The  fur  company  itself  was  especially  lukewarm  toS^VrH 
prospectors  and  explorers  •  because    \l  itl^         ^o^n^x^ 

The  first  discovery  of  gold  in  the  vicinity  of  Sitka  was  mid,, 
by  a  soldier  named  Doyle,   in   1871      In  tS,,  cf.^  . 

quartz  were  found  at  Indian  R^ver  one  Z\lVrl^T^^'^  "i 
in  the  mountains,  back  of  Silver   BavtTn  mi  rf"""";  '"^ 
and  the  '<  Haley  &  Milletich  ledge/'  [h^'^earled^^^^^ 
the  -  Upper  ledge  -  successively  came  to  lieht      Ci;    n" 
cember  9  of  that  year,  the  first  blast  ever  made  in  A In^if" 
quartz  was  exploded,  and  from  the  rock  Thro^i^u^atd 
broken  up  by  it,  about  sixty  dollars  worth  of  frer^oM  ^t 

Sisc'Jetd  ^^''^'^T'  ^^y  '""^  ''StewarttdVe  '    :. 
1877  the  "Lower  ledge"  passed  into  the  hands  of  S.n 

:«'  6\h"  t""  ''"'^  '"••  '»  '"  8'«i  .'r     a  the  ^a/'t 

1076  the    Sti'iirnrf  naooo.i    ;„»_  »!__    .        .      «" j-nc  Way.      in 

,  a..  ,._,,^  „,,„  j^g  jjj^jj^g  ^^  Portland  men, 


I 


r<ffm' 


I  as 


OU/i  NE 11^  ALASKA. 


ii 


under  the  name  of  the  Alaska  Gold  and  Silver  Mining 
Company.     This  mine  has  been  mismanaged.     Neverthe- 
less, it  possesses   a   steam  ten-stamp  mill,  shops,  cabins 
and  full  outht.     A  tunnel  is  in  over  i6o  feet,  in  good  ore 
all  the    way.     Another,   loo  feet  above  it,  is  in  eighty-four 
feet,  and  another  was  about  being  started  in  the  month  of 
February,   1880,  at  which  date  the  output  of  eleven  days' 
work  was  about  $1,800  worth  of  bullion,  with  over  fourteen 
pounds  of  amalgam  produced  from  free  gold  alone  ready 
for  shipment.     These  statements   I   gather  from  Captain 
lieardslee's  report  of  1880,  and  I  am  not  aware  that  any 
thing  has  been  done  in  that  vicinity  since  then.    Other  ledges 
discovered  at  sundry  times  on  the  same  range,  are  known 
as  the  "  Haley  &  Francis,"  "  Wicket  Fall,"  and  "  Great  East- 
ern;   and  there  are  more  still,  further  east.     Assays  of  the 
"Great  Eastern,"  by  Selby  &  Co.  of  San  Francisco,  yielded 
$175  gold  and  $5.20  silver  per  ton  in  1879.     These  speci- 
mens came  from  the  surface,  and    showed  no   free  gold 
whatever.     Haley  claims  are  found  all  over  the  country 
one  of  which  is  said  to  have  yielded  him  $20,000  in  five 
years  "arastra  "  work  ;  but  there  are  lots  of  "  holes  "  said 
to  be  valuable,  which  are  utterly  worthless,  and  always  were. 
In  the  enumeration  of  mining  enterprises,  I  should  add 
that  the  Mexican  Gold  and   Silver  Mining  Company  and 
the    Admiralty  Gold  and  Silver  Mining    Company   each 
With  $10,000,000  capital  stock,  and  each  with  J.  D    Fry 
T.  J.  Hay,  James  Treadwell  and  C.  F.Stone  as  directors! 
were  recently  organized  at  San  Francisco  ;  the  former  for 
the  development  of  valuable  claims  in  the  great  gold  belt 
of    Douglas  Island,  the   latter  for  ledges  on   Admiralty 
Island.     These  companies  are  preparing  to  get  to  work 
this  summer. 

Time  was,  in  the  days  of  the  Frazer  River  gold  fever 
when  miners  fitted  out  at  Wrangell  and  followed  up  the 
Stickeen  River,  through  a  defile  of  the  Ahiska  mountains 
into  the  British  territory  beyond,  where  the  diggings  were. 
Wrangell  had  a  population  of  three  thousand  people  thenj 
and  could  not  accommodate  them  all.  So,  when  the  houses 
were  filled,  old  hulks  of  vessels  were  converted  into  hotels 
and  lodgings,  and  these  still  remain,  high  and  dry  on  the 
shelving  shore,  but  gradually  falling  to  decay,  like  a  majority 
of  the  houses  in  this  at  present  almost  deserted  town. 
Perhaps  in  some  not  distant  day  the  mines  will  once  more 
pan  out  rich  and  general  business  revive,  though,  of  course, 
there  is  a  quantity  of  quartz  holes  scattered  all  over  the 
country  which  are,  in  the  native  vernacular,  "  kultus  "  (no 


■-'W 


ALASKA'S  MINERAL   WEALTH.  129 

good).  To  conclude  :  Alaska  is  a  fascinatinjr  field  for 
prospectors.  One  can  find  there  a  '« show  •'  o  e^ery  fhin  J 
he  wants-gold,  silver,  iron,  cinnabar,  copper,  r^S  coal 
and  great  red  garnets  as  big  as  hickory  n^ts  but  he 
results  do  not  always  realize  the  promise,^and  the  reason 
presumably  ,s  a  lack  of  capital  necessary  to  develop  them 
Marble  crops  out  all  over  the  country  through  which  Te 

wTweU  h'Ts^  "^"'^.^'^  P^"^«-     AIex.°S,quette.'o 
wrangcU,  has  some  very  fine  specimens  of  mottled  white 
and  blue  marble  from  a  quarry  quite  conveSt  to  Tide 

V:rmillion"l  ate  i'"J^  '''     ^''''  '''  -^e'^aTdiscove  iet 

W  neonle  th  .t  h  ""''°'';.''  '"'^'^  '^^"^^  V^^'^  *«  con- 
vince people  that  the  ore  would  pay  for  working,  hut  when 

a  certain  iron  company  found  nerve  to  quietly  undertake  the 

the^S  ''  AuTrV-P  '''r.  '^"^  '""^  firstyLr  and  .'6,000 
tne  next.     All  that  is  needed  in  Alaska  is  capital 

JTone  a  rndfrJuM  '"1"'''^  ""^''^  *"  "'"^  y^^''  has  under, 
gone  a  wonderful  development  in  British  Columbia  Coal 
has  been  found  widely  distributed  over  the  mZhnd  nm 

Ihe^n^rth  ^aT'^H^^.^  7'  ^"^^"  CharLtte  IsZclTwlir  to 
nnfhr..;  '  \  Z^'""^  '^'^  "^'"^^  P'ace  the  only  vein  of 
fonn  1  A  lu  ^''T^'^^  °"  ^he  Pacific  coast  has  been 
found.     As  the  geological  structure  of  Alaska  is  simihr  to 

x^tinl'thT^TLr'/r"*'  ^''.  "^^y  not^ikVd"  osi^ 
exist  in  each  !     1  he  gold  mines  of  Alaska  are  far  richer 
than  those  of  Cariboo  and  Cassi..,  in  British  ColumhK    of 
which  the  output  of  Douglas  Islknd  is  rfun  asTuraVe 
At  present  the  mining  laws  are  satisfactory.     (LrOrgan.c 

approval  of  the  good  behav.orof  the  miners  of  Alaska  even 
in  the  Idle  days  of  winter.  "  They  not  only  conducted  ihem 
se  yes  ,n  the  most  respectable  manner,  but  have  g  ven  S 
willing  CO  operation  in  carrying  out  such  simple  faws  as  we 
have  found  It  advisable  to  establish  from  tie  to  time '' 
Th'f  testimony  applied  to  the  days  before  there  was  anv 
civil  government.  I  certainly  found  the  Silver  Bow  miners 
a  most  orderly  community,  among  whom  no  stronger  Ser' 

rnrctr2".v  rii^f  ^'-—  ^-^  Of  thic?umr;. 

— i  —  J 


f 

a 

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i 

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'■ 

1' 

<; 
M 

i 

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1; 

i>'-fi 

I 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES. 


It  has  been  my  good  fortune  to  enjoy  unusual  opportun- 
ities to  investigate  the  inland  and   .m  water  fishes  of  Alaska 
having  coasted  along  a  thousand  .  ,    .  of  the  shore  line  and 
visited  nearly  all  of  its  fishing  stati.  i. .  in  company  with  pro- 
fessional  hshcrmen,  familiar  with  the  Pacific  coast.     Knowl- 
edge  of  the  habitat  of  deep-sea  fish  can  only  be  obtained' 
by  .eeling  the  bottom  with  repeated  and  laborious  soundings. 
aided  by  that  intuition  which  enables  an  experienced  person 
to  determine  where  they  are  by  the  color  of  the  water  and 
the    configuration   of  the   land.     Codfish  and   some  other 
species  can  be  traced  in  part  by  following  the  bait  fish  upon 
which  they  feed  and  which  appear  upon  the  surface  and  in 
the  bays  and  estuaries  at  certain  se  sons.     Seafowls,  seals 
and  huini)backed  whales  are  of  great  assistance  to  the  investi. 
gator— indicating  by  their  own  presence  the  presence  of  the 
fish.     Humpbacked  whales  and  porpoises  are  often  seen  in 
large  numbers  in  the  land-locked  waters  of  the  Alaskan 
archipelago,  sporting  and  spouting  in  basins  so  small  that 
they  seem  hardly  more  than   lakelets  ;  and   it  is  proper  at 
once  to  remind  the  reader  that  the  entire  mainland  of  our 
new  possession  is  Hanked  by  an  outlying  chain  of  islands, 
chiefly  mountainous,  with  shores  which  drop  abruptly  into 
deep  water  ;  and  that  there  are  few  open-water  reaches  for 
a  distance  of  fifteen  hundred  miles  that  are  exposed  to  the 
full  force  of  the  ocean  swell  and  the  breakers. 

From  all  indications  I  am  convinced  that  someday  in  the 
near  future  the  fisheries  of  Alaska  will  occupy  as  important 
a  commercial  place  as  those  of  Norway  and 'the  Hebrides 
and  the  North  Atlantic.  Already  the  canning  of  salmon 
has  become  an  industry  of  considerable  importance,  and 
establishments  have  been  located  at  all  the  principal  points 
as  far  north  as  Sitka  and  considerably  beyond,  the  jiroprie- 
tors  preferring  the  services  of  the  native  Indians  to  those  of 
the  irrepressible  Chinese— the  favorable  difference  between 
the  two  races  compensating  for  the  many  obvious  inconven- 
iences of  a  location  so  remote  from  a  market. 
An  evidence  of  the  value  to  which  these  fisheries  have 


■"■?l*ff-«i 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES.  ,3, 

near  b.tka  put  up  700  barrels''    Th/re  were  a   o  shu  ned 
large  qua.U.t.es   of  l.alibut,  herring,  cod,  rS  c od  and  £  r 
rTsSltshur    '""'r''  ^««5would'have'si;oi"^'ti     bjte; 
unnroi      le      M^'''/r''''"  '"  '""''^^^^  ^^'^''^  "^-^'-^  the  labor 

the  result  e  Ah  L-?'"''  '^'?^  ^'"'f  ^^  ^""'^.  but  warmed  like 
Liic  rest  ot  the  Alaskan  coast  by  the  Japan  current  or  Kiirn 

tirr.  Ire  wT.^ir""^  •"  •"'  «">' ''--  ""h^'aZ: 

"c.     1  dart  say  that  no  commercia    company  in  the  wnrlrf 

tic'-    or ";'h^'  "'^  \"  ^  "?"'  "^  ^''^^^^'  -  Sab  y'romai' 

up'reme      ArSr''"'   "^  /^^    surrounding    scemery    ?s 

S"c  heuht    h    ['"^^''°^  snow-capped   mountains    of 

majestic  Height   nirlose   a  narrow  strait,  whose  waters  -xr^ 

upon   the  summits  the  eye  can  scarcely  distinLniish   the 
fleecy  vapor   from  the   spectral  snow      Llw    he   timber 

upon  the  |„„nt  of  rocks  at  its  mouth  the  ca'nerv  st-imls 

crched  upon  a  ledge  so  narrow  that  the  wha"ves  and  fish 

ns  staijes  can  scarcely  keep  a  foothoUl  above  the  tide  it 

1:  :;:thT.  re^edT'"?  otri:  ^Tch^^tf-A^S^^ort  0I 

=.pi:f,i-/;7,e;/-iTsfcS 

rAasse^   up  and    down  the  landlocked   channel   unt'  '  thev 
finally  melt  away  or  drift  out  into  the  ocean      On  a  beach 

aajuncts  of  half-dried  salmon  spread  on  the  rocks  rueful 

tea^d'f?!  X''""f.'  "^TV^  ""  ^'^"'•^  '-'"d  care  uily  pro! 
tecieutrom  the  weather  bv  bnno-hs  ind  ki— 1— -  -  •  •'^ r 

- .-    ;i'-^  «»nu  Diaujicis  wncn  not 


»3a 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


:(i 


■  ■ 
i 


'"  "se.  Gray  and  white  gulls  fill  the  upper  air,  or  sit  on 
the  drifting  icebergs  and  scream,  while  large  wisps  of  sand- 
peeps  flit  constantly  from  point  to  point,  feeding  on  the 
land-wash.  In  hours  of  toil  the  foreground  is  active  with  the 
movements  of  the  canoes  and  boats  hauling  seines.  'I'his 
location  is  also  known  as  "  Pyramid  Harbor." 

Captain  Beardslee  writes  in  his  vivacious  colloquial  way  • 
"One  day  I  jumped  in  with  Tom  McCawley,  one  of  the 
most  experienced  salmon  seiners,  and  got  him  to  show  me 
how  It  was    done.     Our    boat,  rowed    by   four    untiring 
Indians,  had  already  a  ton  at  least  of  fish  just  taken,  but  there 
was  room  for  another,  and  McCawley  wanted  it.    We  rowed 
slowly  around  the  various  islands  for  an  hour  with  no  suc- 
cess ;  the  tide  was   high,  the  day   too  bright ;  none  were 
jumping.     We  pulled  into  a  quiet,  pleasant,  little   cove  and 
lunched  ;  the  Indians  preparing  for  us  a  good  pot  of  coffee, 
of  which  they  are  very  fond,  when  well  sweetened.     With 
plenty  of  it,  hard  bread  and  smoked  salmon,  they  can  work 
forever.     As  we  lay  on  the  grass  with  our  pipes,  an  Indian 
called  out  '  Fish! '  and  pointed  to  a  spot  in  the  channel  but  a 
short  way  off.     Soon  another  leaped,  and  in  a  moment  we 
were  in  and  off.     I  saw  the  fish  jump,  an ',  after  a  little 
.time,  another,  or,  as  it  seemed   to  me,  t'  j  same   one.     I 
didn't  think  much   of  that  school ;  but  when  I  said  so,  the 
Indians  answered  '  Tshugatahen'  (plenty),  and  Tom  said  • 
'  When^  one   jumps,   there's  a  hundred  under    him    that 
don  t ; '  and  that  was  news  to  me,  for  I  expected  to  see  the 
whole  school  at  once,  as  one  does  porpoises.     Pulling  for 
the  shore,  fifty  yards  to  the  left  of  them,  one  end  of  the 
seine  was  landed  and  held  by  the  crew  of  one  of  the  boats 
(there  were  two),  while  the  other  rapidly  pulled  around  the 
apparently  deserted   spot ;  the  hundred   yards  were  soon 
placed,  and  *  Haul  in  !  '  was  the  order.     I  tended  boat,  our 
crew  having  also  landed,  and  made  fast  to  the  outer  row  of 
corks,  and  was  drawn  in  with  them,  peering  anxiously  into 
the  diminishing  circle.     Soon  I  saw  bright  streaks  darting 
rapidly  to  and  fro,  and  then  a  dozen  in  the  air  glistening 
in  the  sunshine.     The  pool  diminished,  and  a  solid  mass  of 
plunging  fish  became  visible  ;  not  one  leaped  over  the  corks  ; 
they  dove  as  they  approached  the  wall  of  net,  rising  in 
the  center  for  convulsive  leaps.     In  a  few  moments  two 
tons  of  salmon,  weighing  five  to  twenty  pounds  each,  were 
huddled  together   in  a   six-foot  circle,  and  into  this  the 
Indians  who  were  not  holding  net,  dashed  blow  after  blow 
of  short,  stout  gaff  hooks,  jerking  out  with  every  dash  a 
salmon— they  simply  '  fired  at  the  flock,'  and  never  missed. 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES.  133 

..jerk  over  the  gunwales,  and  the  noble  fish  lay  heaped  ud 
gasping  and  struggling.  This  was  in  July  ;  nearly^  all  of 
the  fish  were  good  and,  according  to  McCaw  ey,  the^were 
five  varieties  m  the  catch.  A  few  which  had  begurto 
dog  were  cast  into  the  canoe  of  an  old  Indian  who 
accompanied  us,  and  who  had  gleaned  quite  a  canoeload  o? 
such  as  are  considered  unsuitable  for  canning  " 

Heavily  laden  canoes  bring  the  still  struggling  fish  to  the 
1ft  which  hoists  them  to  the  cleaning  tablf,  where  women 

dr^w  t^'^^''M''  ''^^  ^^^^«'  ^'^^  «ff  th«  fi"^  and  taiTs  TnS 
draw  the  entrails,  and  then  divide  the  bright  red  flesh  into 
pieces  of  a  proper  size  to  fit  the  cans.  Boys  solder  the  t^Tns 
which  are  then  put  into  boilers  with  their  contents  and 
afterward  resoldered,  labeled  and  packed.  Thus  whole 
families  are  employed,  the  labor  being  divided  amonglhem 
according  to  their  ability  to  perform.     For  their  own  use  th2 

^r^'^e^^:.  '''T'"  °"  ^'^  ^?^^^  '"  ^he  sun,  no  salt  be  ng 
used.  T  heir  store-houses  are  often  plac-d  in  the  branches 
of  trees,  sometimes  for'  or  fifty  feet  above  the  ground  it 
IS  said,  with  a  view  to  keep  them  from  the  ravagef  of  Wow 
flies  and  other  pests.  Many  of  these  houses  will  hold  sev- 
eral  tons,  and  are  used  by  a  number  of  families  in  common- 
ti^^^f 'f ''f  ^H?,^  ^y  "^'^^^^  P°'^«'  ^hich  are  admirabHuC^ 

S  DlacinrtL'.  If  "■'•     ?°T-P^^^^"^  ^^^^^'  ^^^^'  ^he  custom 
ot  placing  the  boxes  high  is  to  keep  them  from  dogs  and 

Itnt'  ^"'  'K  ^"^'""^  ^^^'^"  ^^^y  the  onefeason 
P  K  lu  T  ^^^^  '^^"  ^^^  ^^"^e  '-thod  employed  elsewhere 
by  both  Indians  and  white  men.  A  spent  salLn--a^dog' 
salmon  ar  it  ,s  termed-after  spawning,  is  a  sight  to  sef ' 
I  found  one  in  shoal  water  some  two  feet  long,  fs  th  n  af  a 
slab,   eebly  struggling  as  though  he  were  trying  to  p^sh 

^  as?  ?^.T  I  r"^'^  ^'"^  "P  ^"'^  landed  hi^m  on^?he 
grass.  A  s  cker  fish  never  continued  to  wag  its  tail  His 
skin  was  yellow  picked  out  with  green  and  blue  spots  (such 

shootf  c;  'Tf'  ^  K  ^"-"^^  ^"  y°"^  ^^"^  ^fter  ^n  al  -day 
shoot).     Spots  from  the  size  of  a  bit  to  that  of  a  dollar  and 

one  about  an  inch  wide  and  six  long  on  his  side    were  raw 

as  If  gnawed  out  by  mice.     One  eye  was  gone  one  g'u 

cover  eaten   through,  and  every  fin  and  his  tailwere  bu 

ragged  bristles    all  integument  between    the   rays  having 

disappeared.     No  wonder  the  legend  arose  that  all  S 

forma  salmon  die  immediately  after  spawning.  The  Creoles 

with  thH:"T'\^l^y  ^""^"^  ""'"b^'-^  of  these  sick  fish 
with  their  gaffs,  and  they  consider  that  they  are  better  eat- 
mg  when  dried  than  the  healthy  fish. 
The  quantities  of  salmon  found  in   ai^ci,™  „ : ... 


134 


OUR  NEW  ALASK^. 


enormous.  I  have  watched  the  movements  of  Eastern 
salmon  m  the  most  prolific  rivers  of  Canada  during  their 
spawnmg  season,  but  have  nowhere  found  them  in  such 
compacted  masses  as  they  appear  in  Pacific  waters.  Only 
where  dams  or  natural  falls  obstructed  their  free  passage 
were  they  sufficiently  crowded,  in  those  Canadian  rivers,  to 
mterfere  at  all  with  each  other,  or  with  the  comfortable 
ascent  to  the  upper  streams  ;  they  had  always  elbov  room 
for  acrobatic  leaps  and  somersaults.  On  the  Pacific  oast 
their  numbers  are  incalculably  greater— perhaps  a  hundred 
fold.  During  the  period  of  their  annual  mid-summer 
"  runs  "  they  swim  in  schools  ten  feet  deep  or  more,  with 
ranks  closed  up  solid.  Only  those  of  our  Eastern  fishermen 
who  are  familiar  with  the  swarming  of  mossbunkers,  herring 
and  bluefish  can  have  -iny  conception  of  their  multitudes. 

Of  course  we  are  all  accustomed  to  the  current  stories  of 
their  innumerable  hosts  out  West,  yet  I  will  deliberately 
strain  the  credulity  of  the  reader  by  over-reaching  state- 
ments far  more  marvelous  and  declare  that  in  Alaska  the 
salmon  jam  the  estuaries  and  inlets  so  that  they  can  not 
move  at  all  !  I  have  seen  the  outlet  of  Lake  Loring,  which 
IS  a  rivulet  two  miles  long  and  two  rods  wide,  connecting 
the  salt  water  with  the  fresh,  so  choked  with  living  salmon 
that  if  a  plank  were  laid  across  their  protruding  backs  a  man 
could  walk  across  dry  shod.  It  is  so  with  other  similar 
localities.  On  the  southwestern  coast  the  mountains  rise 
from  the  ocean  quite  abruptly,  so  that  there  are  but  two 
riv  -f  any  considerable  length  which  cut  their  way  through 
the  -  ridges  from  the  interior  ;  but  the  melting  of  the 

snows  upon  the  peaks  fills  all  the  valleys  and  pocketi  bor- 
dering upon  the  coast,  forming  picturesque   lakes  whose 
outlets  reach  the  ocean  through  short  rugged  channels  worn 
deeply  into  the  rocks.     The  tide  there  rises  some  eighteen 
feet,   and  when  it  is  low  the  outflow  of  the  lakes  makes  its 
.  romantic  journey  to  the  brine  by  a  series  of  rapids  and 
tempting  pools,  where  brook  trout  of  two  varieties  can  be 
caught  with  a  bait  of  salmon  roe,  or  even  with  a  fly,  afford- 
ing good  sport  to  the  angler.     But  whenever  the  tide  begins 
to  make,  the  whole  vicinity  of  the  outlet  at  once  swarms 
with  impatient  salmon,  and  as  the  channel  gradually  fills 
with  the  growing  flood  the  schools  press  inward  and  upward 
from  outside,  until,  finally,  when  the  tide  is  full,  the  stream 
becomes  a  slack-water  channel  reaching  from  the  salt  water 
to  the  very  border  of  the  lakes,  of  which  everv  cubic  foot  is 
choked  with  fish  wedged  tightly.     No  theater  lobby  on  a 
benefit  nieht.  nor  sheen  van  c\n 


a  transportation  line,  was 


COMMERCIAL  I^ISHEH/ES.  13c 

ever  packed  more  solid.  In  such  extremity  the  heloless 
sa  mon  become  an  easy  prey  to  animals  and  men.  One  can 
lift  them  out  with  his  hands  until  he  is  tired.  I  is  almost 
impossible  to  thrust  a  spear  or  boat-hook  into  the  mass  and 
of  course  a  fish  must  come  out  whenever  it  is  wSawn 
Bears  take  the.r  opportunity  to  scoop  them  out  w^h  their 
great  paws,  and  when  they  have  regaled  themse  ves  to 
satiety  they  retire  to  the  adjacent  thickets  for  a  deLrt  of 
berries  which  grow  there  in   great  abundance  Ld  varfety 

ZeZTA!r'  T"""^  '"'"^°"  ^''  '"^°  'he  lakes  a'eTery 
;2  V  .u  \^'-  ^^""^  recession  multitudes  are  stranded  of 
which  the  lustiest  flop  back  into  the  ocean,  while  he  mailed 
and^^hapless  remain  dead   and  stranded  on  the  d'nid:' 

Alaska  coast^n'tS?""  """'^  exceptionally  numerous  on  the 

be  no  dnnhf/h"  I  .K  '"^^  ^^^'^  J"''  P^'^'  ^"^  ^here  seems  to 
pe  no  doubt  that  they  are  always  more  abundant  there  than 
in  the  more  southern  latitudes  of  British  Columb  a  and  Ore" 
gon  ;  and  they  swarm  clear  across  the  Behring  Strait  to  the 
coast  of  Siberia  and  down  to  Japan,  filling  all  th  wa'-ers 
with  their  incalculable  numbers!  In  the  Vc  nity 'o7such 
hosts  the  problem  of  bait  disappears.  Salmon  enou/h  can 
be  bought  there  for  a  dime  to  furnish  bait  for  five  th?usanS 

S?ll  onlvl  ''' v"' ""'  '°'-'  ^'^^  ''  ''^'  enterprising  YaTkee 
w  11  only  turn  his  attention  to  the  opportunity  wiich   the 

minw'rblr  °H^f''^^^"  ^"PP^>^  ''-y   AtLTrtsher- 
man  with  bait  and  freeze  out  the  Kanucks  so  that  they  will 

The  halibut  of  Alaska  are  bound  to  be  a  source  of  larcr^ 
revenue,  although  at  present  the  fishery!  ?n  [ts  ?nfan?y 
Great  numbers  are  taken  from  the  numerous  banks  along 
the  coast ;  they  grow  to  an  enormous  size,  sometimes  reach? 
ing  five  hundred  pounds  in  weight.  Captain  M^i  sey  Sf 
San  Francisco,  in  the  year  1880,  filled  up  the  schooner 
Genera/  Mtller  in  less  than  a  month  on  the  banks  off  Skka 
taking  one  hundred  tons  of  halibut  at  the  rate  of  '000 
pounds  per  day.  There  can  be  no  question  but  that'  this 
business  will  be  some  day  followed  up  with  profit,  especiall^ 

erier^hi  h    ?nT«"''''^  depletion^f  th'e  Atlantl  S 
eries,  which,   in  1885,    were   reduced   to  one-fourth    their 
former  proportions  ;  of  which  Prof.  Goode,  of  the  Smith 
soman  Institution,  has  written  as  follows  • 

"  At  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  these  fish  wer^ 
exceedingly  abundant  in  Massa-  ".usetts  V,2  IT.^^\^^\1 
leso,  and  even  later,  they  were  extremely  abundanron 


!,  I 


M 


i.tr^ 


136 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


George  s  banks  ;  since  1850  tney  have  partially  disappeared 
from  this  region  ;  the  fishermen  have  recently  been  following 
them  to  other  banks,  and,  since  1874,  out  into  deeper  and 
deeper  water,  and  the  fisheries  are  now.cau.ed  on  almost 
exclusively  m  the  gullies  between  the  off-shore  banks  and  on 
the  outer  edges  of  the  banks  in  water  100  to  350  fathoms  in 

u  P't  ^?^^^  species  has,  in  like  manner,  been  driven  from 
the  shallow  fishing  grounds  on  the  coast  of  Europe  ;  there 
IS,  however,  little  reason  to  doubt  that  they  still  are  present 
in  immense  numbers  within  easy  access  off  the  British  and 
Scandinavian  coasts,  and  that  a  good  fishery  will  yet  grow 
up  when  the  fishermen  of  those  countries  shall  have  become 
more  enterprising.  In  the  year  1879  there  were  forty  vessels 
of  3  i6j>  tons,  from  Gloucester,  Mass.,  employed  exclusively 
'u  xV  ^^?  ^^'^^"^  fishery.  The  total  catch  of  halibut  on 
the  New  England  coast  for  1879  is  estimated  at  14,6^7  000 
pounds.  t,  o;, 

"  In  1885,  the  halibut  fleet  of  Gloucester  is  reduced  to  one- 
tourth  of  Its  former  size,  and  the  total  catch  is  estimated  at 
from  three  to  five  million  pounds.  It  is  evident  that  within 
a  few  years  the  American  off-shore  halibut  grounds  will  be 
so  depleted  that  the  fresh  halibut  fishery  on  our  coasts  will 
be  abandoned.  We  shall  then  derive  our  chief  supply  from 
the  waters  of  Greenland  and  Iceland,  where  several  ves- 
sels  go  each  year  to  bring  back  cargoes  of  salt  'flitches.' 
Halibut  will  come  into  our  markets  only  in  a  smoked  condi- 
tion,  and  the  species  will  be  as  unfamiliar  in  our  fish  markets 
as  M  is  in  those  of  the  old  world." 

But  why  go  to  the  British  and  Scandinavian  coasts,  or  to 
the  waters  of  Greenland  and  Iceland,  when  Alaska  is  so 
convenient,  the  cost  of   bait  almost  nothing,  the  transit 
across  the  continent  so  rapid,  and  refrigerators  so  complete  > 
if  we  have  fresh  Pacific  salmon  in  car  eastern  markets,  why 
[)°^   f.'jesh   halibut  as   well,  that^the  species  may  remain 
tamihar  ?       If  salt  fish  are  required,  or  halibut  fins,  salt 
can  perhaps  be  manufactured  on  the  coast  from  sea  water 
by  evaporation,  as  it  now  is  at  places  on  the  California  sea- 
board  ;  or  the  halibut  can  be  sun-dried  or  smoked.    Salmon 
are  used  for  bait.     The  Indians  are  adepts  at  taking  these 
great  fish.     1  hey  do  not  fish  from  the  canoes,  but  set  lines 
which  are  attached  to  floats— generally  bladders— to  which 
are  fastened  little  flags  on  staffs.     Among  a  group  of  them 
the  fisherman  watches,  and    when   the  hooked    fish    has 
exhausted  itself  towing  the  float,  he  is  secured.     It  is  verv 
exhilarating  to  the  novice  to  see  the  floats,  when  a  fish  is 
on,  go  diving  and  darting  through  the  water  at  the  rate  of 


COMMERCIAL  FIShERlE!^;.  j^ 

ten   knots  an   hour.      The  hook  is  a  native  contnv;,nr^ 

which  .s  far  more  efficient  than  any  shop  fg!  maS"   Sv 

of  two  pieces  of  tough  wood,  each  about  eleven  fnchesToni 

beveled  at  the  ends,  so  that  when  joined  and  seized  ^tli' 

twine  or  s.new,  they  form  a  < ,  or  angle,  with  an  onenin/fiv  e 

nches  wide;  an  iron  spike  passes  Through  the  lower  jaw 

mclmmg  inwardly,  the  upper  jaw  of  the  hc-k  servTni  is  a 

guide  to  the  jaw  of  the  fish,  which  can  nor  be  wi  hdraln 

without  catching  on  the  point  of  the  spike     A  fish  whicE 

once  takes  hold,  seldom  gets  away.  ""^ 

In  1884  Captain  Exon,  of  Portland,  Oregon    eauinnf^d  =, 

was  ramiiiar  but  had  hardly  demonstrated  the  vsLivf^  of  this 
method,  and  the  abundance  of  fish  where  soug    ^  before 
he  was  unfortunately  drowned.      Other  pracdcf       ^n  are 
now  mvestigating  the  subject  with  the  furpo';  ,      prose! 
cuti.g  the  business  to  a  profitable  result  if  thev  find  the 
conditions  as  favorable  as  they  believe  them  to  be      There 
are  also  a  few  San  Francisco  fishermen  who  vis4t  the  Alaskf 
coast  for  cod,  of  which  they  salt  some  2,000  tons  annual 
Another  newly  introduced  industry  i's  the  manufac^ar^e 
Th     firs    Scttv  oT^hfk-^d^"'  preparing  jSteTorm^rS 

ment  of   ao,ooo  barrels  was  made  in   September  last    Sf 
which  12  000  barrels  went  the  long  distance  to  New  York        ' 

on  /h  ^t^'T  ^^  ^°"^  ^^^^^^  therJwill  be  many  oil  factories 
on  the  Alaska  coast,  for  all  the  bays  and  -stuar  es  swa  m 
with  oil-producing  fish,  and  the  product  is" limited  onTvbv 
the  capacity  of  the  works  and  the  supply  o  casks  TWs 
company  expects    to    manufacture    300,000    ga  Ions    this 

BrkTshT'T''/-^  ^  ^""^'^^  car-loads.'  At  SkidfgatJ^^  on  the 

Bntisn  Columbian  coast,  there  is  a  factory  for  extracting 

oil  from    he  livers  of  dogfish,  whose  output  this  vear^f 

50,000  gallons.     This  oil  is  admitted  to  be  ^superior  ^to  anv 

other  kind  as  a   lubricant.     It  is  shipped   chiefly  to   the 

Uni  ed  States,  where  it  pays  a  duty  of  25  per  cent    thoui^h 

small  quantities  are  consumed  in  the  Province  or  ser.fo 

Honolulu  and  China.     .In  another  year  or  so  this  indu  t  ? 

will  probably  establish  itself  on  the  Alaska  coast  as  we  f 

and  thereby  save  the  duty.  ' 

,    The  foregoing  summary  refers  to  the  mea-er  fishincr 

?ateme"ts?ha1^?on'  ^'"^'^  ^^•^^'"^'  ^"'  '  wTu ^C'^'  hf 
statements  that  follow,  what  enormous  pos  ibilities  of  lurra 

,     -.  vYd-cr.. ,)!  me  ^auihu  urc  lar  more  prolific  of 


I  .y' 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 

fish  and  other  marine  forms  than  the  Atlantic,  or  even  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.     For  not  only  do  we  find  the  sea  lion,  the 
fur  seal,  the  sea  otter,  and  other  exceptional  forms  of  marine 
life  in  vast  numbers,  but  we  find  the  cod,  the  tom-cod,  the 
halibut,  the  herring,  the  flounder,  the  salmon,  the  sea-trout 
of  the   same  or  closely  related   species,  common  to  the 
Atlantic  coast ;  and  we  find  them   differing  in   size,  many 
larger  and  frequently  more  abundant,    but   dissimilar  in 
color  and  flavor— and,  beside  these,  a  great  many  varieties 
unknown   to   Atlantic   waters,   and   of  especial    economic 
value.     Principal  among  the  latter  are  the   sculpins,   the 
scorpaenids,  sebastichthydse,  and  the  embiotocoid  or  vivi- 
parous fishes,  which  comprise  a  great  number  of  species. 
At  the  same  time  it  may  be  borne  in  mind  that  there  are 
many  Atlantic  fishes,  like  the  blackfish,  cunner,  striped  bass, 
porgy,  sheepshead,  bluefish,  etc.,  which  have  no  analogues 
on  the  F     .fie.     The  viviparous  fish  may  be  said  to  be  some- 
what intermediate  in  external  appearance,  as  they  are  in 
structure,  between  the  labrids  and  the  sparids,  but  they  are 
readily  recognizable  and   distinguished  from  all  others  by 
ichthyologists.     In  reproduction  they  develop  a  uterus-like 
envelope,  which  incloses  the  young  fish  to  the  number  of 
from  seven  or  eight  to  forty,  and  these  are  hatched  out  at 
maturity  just  like  a  litter  of  kittens  or  mice.     The  family  is 
characteristic  of  the  western  coast,  only  two  or  three  species 
being  known  to  ocean  beyond  the  limits  of  the  Pacific  coast 
of  temperate  North  America,  and  these  few  only  on  the 
opposite  coast   of  the   Pacific   in  the  northern  temperate 
region,  and  possibly  in  the  opposite  hemisphere  in  the  tem- 
perate seas  of  New  Zealand  and  Australia,     The  numerous 
varieties  of  sebastichthys  are  locally  known  as  "  rock-cod," 
but  they  have   not  the   remotest    relation  to  the  family 
Gadidoe.     There  are  no  less  than  twenty-eight  of  them  on 
the  Pacific  coast,  of  which  six  are  found  in  Alaskan  waters. 
Several  of  them  are  highly  colored  and  very  beautiful- 
bright  scarlet,  banded  yellow  and  black,   pink-spotted,  etc. 
Indeed,  the  fish  of  the  Pacific  are  more  highly  colored  as  a 
rule  than  their  congeners  of  the  Atlantic,  a  characteristic 
equally  true  of  most  of  the  marine  forms— animals,  mollusks, 
crustaceans,  plants,  etc.,  as  well  as  of  the  land  flora  and 
fauna,  the  fruits,  vegetables,    shrubs,   trees,   and  flowers. 
One  of  the  rockfish  just  referred  to  very  closely  resembles 
the  Florida  red  snapper  in  color  and  general  appearance, 
though  the  structural  differences  are  quite  apparent  when 
specimens  of  each  are  examined  side  by  side.     As  a  class 
they  are  good  edible  fish.     Most  of  them  are  caught  in  deep 


If 

m 

ff 

m 

ill 

f 

-.l 

1 

I 


I,-1^'"< 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES, 


141 


water  on  rocky  ledges,  a  half  mile  or  so  from  shore,  often 
m  thirty  fathoms,  with  hard  clams,  crabs  or  fresh  m^at  for 
bait,  and  it  is  very  easy  to  determine  whenever  the  fisher- 
man swings  off  from  a  ledge,  for  the  fish  stop  biting,  a  fact 
which  shows  how  important  it  is  to  ascertain  and  keep  the 
exact   location   of  their  feeding  grounds.     Besides  these 
there  are  many  kinds  of  fishes^St  at  all  related  to  ths 
family,  or  to  each  other,  which  are  called  rock-cod      One 
such,  which  IS  familiarly  known  in  Alaska       the  black-cod 
rock-cod,  and  coal-fish,  is  likely  to  form  a  valuable  addition 
to  our  list  of  economic  fishes,  and  may  well  fill  the  nlace  of 
substuute  for  some  other  kinds  which  may  have  become  or 
may  become  scarce.     No  one  has  labored  half  so  hard  to 
secure    the    introduction    of  this  estimable  fish  into   our 
markets  as  the  Hon.  James  G.  Swan,  who  is  the  Haw.  an 
consul  at  Port   Townsend,  Washington   Territory    Ind  a 
veteran  correspondent  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  •  and 
I  regard  it  fortunate  for  the  integrity  of  this  chapter  of  my 
volume   that  I  find   available   iox   republication    here  an 
admirable  report  of  the  habits,  habitat,  and  qiaUty  of  tSe 
black-cod  from  the  Bulletin  of  the  United  States  FisherieS 
Commission  and  from  which  I  cull  the  following  extracts 
[Scientifically   the  fish  is  known  as  Anoplopo^^ fimbHa\ 
1  he  report  says :  ■'  J 

Jll^^^u'^i^''^''^^ ■^'"^'''''  's  known  in  California  as  the 
candle-fish  Spanish  mackerel,  grease-fish,  etc.;  among  the 
Makah  Indians  of  Cape  Flattery,  Wash.,  k  '  beshow,^  and 
by  the  white  residents  of  the  cape  as  'black-cod.'  On 
Queen  Charlotte's  Islands,  British  Columbia,  it  is  cal^d 
^oal-fish  by  white  settlers,  and  by  the  Haidah'indians,  who 
m;ide  on  those  Islands,  it  is  called  «  skil.'  At  Knight's  In- 
et,  British  Columbia,  it  is  called '  kwakewlth.'  Each  tribe  or 
locality  where  it  is  taken  has  a  local  name  for  it,  but  it  is  ^en- 

mnl    ;k       ^'^''"  ^^^T.^'^  ^y  ^'"'  J"'^'^"  and  Gilbert:  and 
most  other  writers,  although  a  specimen  taken  off   Mount 

?P  or  n  ^'m  .^'m  '  ^''^  "^'"^^  ^y  **^"'^«  GaJusJimMa 
tWL  r.       M  •  ^"««""1:  ^8«^  vol.  4,  p.  254),  thus  showing 

ur.  i  ThT  f """.  *°.'?'  ""^  ^"^  ^^^^"'^d  '>y  that  nat^ 
ura  1st.  1  he  term  '  cod  is  applied  by  fishermen  and  fish- 
dealers  on  the  North  Pacific  coast  to  a  variety  of  fish  wh  ch 
are  not  related  to  the  genus  Ga<ius,  and  are  not  found  m 
A  lantic  waters.  The  OpMn  elongatus  is  called  in  San 
Francisco  buffalo  cod.  Green  cod,  blue  cod,  etc.  At  Cape 
Flattery  the  Makah  Indians  ca!!  it  •  ti-shk.'4- '  Vh=  Vhit  - 
call  It  '  kultus  '  cod,  or  inferior  to  true  cod.''"  The'diffeTent 


-If 


i' 


14* 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


varieties  of  Sebastichthys  are  known  in  the  Victoria  and  San 
Francisco  markets  as  rock-cod,  but  do  not  resemble  the 
rock-cod  of  New  England  in  any  manner,  being  more  like 
the  perch,  having  a  remarkable  development  of  sharp  bony 
spines  and  prickles.     The  popular  name  of  black-cod  ap- 
plied to  the  Anoplopotna  fimbria  does  not  seem  any  more  of 
a  misnomer  than  to  call  the  OphiJon  elongatus  blue  or  green 
cod.     In  general  appearance  the  black-cod  resembles  a  pol- 
lock, but  when  fully  grown  they  have  the  rounded  form  of 
a  true  cod,  but  are  not  so  marked.     In   color   they   are   a 
dark  olive  brown  or  sepia  on  the  back,  with  grayish  sides 
and  belly;  the  flesh  is  white  and  very  fat,  like  mackerel,  and 
they  have  been  sold  in  San  Francisco  under   the  name   of 
Spanish  mackerel  when  of  small  size.      Professor  Jordan 
says:    'The    young    ones   are   taken   off   the   wharves  at 
Seattle,  but  are  not  much  thought  of  as  a  food-fish.  It  attains 
its  greatest  perfection  in  very  deep  water,  where  it  attains 
a  size  of  40  inches,  and  a  weight  of  15  pounds.  Instances  ;ire 
not   uncommon   of  black-cod   being  taken   measuring  50 
inches  and  weighing  30  pounds,  but  the  average  is  much 
less  than  this  last.     But  it  is  an  admitted  rule  that  the 
deeper  the  water  the  larger  the  fish.' 

"Although  I  have  the  credit  of  first  introducing  this  fish 
m  a  marketable  shape  to  the  public,  yet  it  has  been  known 
to  the  officers  and  employes  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company 
for  many  years,  but  was  seldom  seen  on  their  tables  ;  the 
enormous  quantities  of  salmon,  eulachon,  herring,  cod, 
halibut  and  other  fish,  easily  and  plentifully  taken,  made  it 
unnecessary  to  incur  the  trouble  of  fishing  in  the  deep 
water  for  the  black-cod.  The  first  I  saw  of  them  was  at'Neah 
Bay,  Wash.  Terr.,  at  the  entrance  of  Fuca  Strait,  in*  1859. 
An  old  Indian  caught  a  few  when  fishing  for  halibut,  f 
procured  one,  which  I  broiled,  and  found  it  equal  to  a  No.  i 
mackerel.  I  have  occasionally  seen  the  '  beshow  '  every 
summer  that  I  have  been  at  Neah  Bay  since  1859,  but  I 
have  never  had  an  opportunity  to  get  any  quantity  of  them 
till  in  September,  1883,  while  at  Skidegate.  Queen  Charlotte's 
Islands,  which  I  visited  under  instructions  from  Profc.sor 
Spencer  F.  Baird.  I  succeeded  in  procuring  about  100  of 
them.  The  Haidah  Indians  take  them  in  considerable 
quantities  on  the  west  coast  of  the  group  of  islands, 
in  the  deep  waters  of  the  inlets  and  harbors,  for  the  purpose 
of  extracting  the  oil  or  grease,  which  is  used  as  food  by  the 
natives,  and  is  similar  in  appearance  to  the  eulachon  grease, 
which  is  of  the  color  and  consistency  of  soft  lard.  From 
Mont^ry  to  the  Arctic  ocean  the  Amphpoma  is  found.     It 


1^ 


U' 


COMMERCIAL  FISHEHIES. 


143 

four  boxes  I  sent  to  the  United  States  vfX    r^'    ^    *" 
are  the  first  ever  exported  f"o™  ^heProv  nee  of"  British 

maifa  ts.Sfo'}  ^c  thrhf:cl:=coror".'^s.ri  ""i; 

made  of  kelp,  in  a  tnanne^siSt"  that  of^h  takahsTf 

fc™:a^:,^rfe:ttnT4rTS /rr^^^^ 

water  ,s  rapid,  and  have  to  extend  to  r^reaf  I  T  Jh  htf 
the.r  buoyancy  will  permit  them  to  reach  the  ^u^£^.      v^ 
about  two-thirds  of  this  length  from  the  root  nn  th^    .  ^^ 
;s  about  the  size  of  a  halibut  line     It  then  exoTnd    till   ."? 

rr^^Thr?  ■'  r'^^^"  "/.he'^naUrsfoJ^Pfay'S! 

i^.^:Hr9rrpteed"trnn'i:^^^^^^^^^^ 

tim^   ?i^  "P  "^"^  ''""S  '"  the  smoke  of  a  lodjre  for  a  shor; 
mher      Th*^'^  ^'^  ^'^  ^"^  ^*^^*^hed  again  and  knot?edTo 
thi  if  i"     ?  ^"  l!''"'^''  ''  continued  at  regular  interval    H 

Hn'.'s'?hfsr™e''srr  ^tij  2r;iri?i:"V'"^"^"fP" 

but  as  it  ,e.s  brittle  if  ,n„e;  "^dV;'  t«  3  ir'ilnv,^' 
r.ably  soaked  in  salt  water  before  beine  us?d     Thi  h   \ 
used  are  of  a  peculiar  shape,  unHkeany  filhihook  I  hav^ 

hemlock,  cut  out  from  olH  decayed  logs.    These  knots 


il 


are  split  into  solintu  nf 


iicn  roujjhly  shaped 


I 


144 


OUR  NEW  ALAS Ji- A. 


•f     \]\ 


With  a  knife,  and  then  steamed  and  bent  into  shape,  which 
shape  they  retain  when  cold.  This  form  is  adopted,  so  the 
Indian  mformed  me,  because  the  bottom  on  the  west  coast 
is  very  foul  with  stones  and  coral  formations  and  incrus- 
tations  :  steel  hooks  get  fast,  and  lines  are  subject  to  being 
lost ;  but  this  style  of  hook  does  not  get  fast. 

"  When  the  hook  is  to  be  used  the  bait  is  tied  on  with  the 
string  which  is  used  to  bring  the  two  ends  of  the  hook 
together  and  keep  them  in  position  when  not  baited.     After 
the  bait  is  well  secured  a  piece  of  stick  is  inserted  to  press 
the  ends  of  the  hook  apart.     When  the  fish  bites  the  bait  it 
knocks  out  the  stick,  which  floats  to  the  surface,  the  two 
ends  of  the  hook,  springing  together,  close  on  the  fish's  head 
and  hold  It  fast.      It  is  usual  to  tie  from  seventy-five  to  one 
hundred  hooks  to  the  line,  at  a  distance  of  about  two  feet 
apart,  and  the  fish  are  so  plentiful  that  not  unfrequently  every 
hook  Will  have  a  fish.     The  sticks  which   float  to  the  sur- 
face, when  knocked  out  of  the  hook  by  the  fish    serve  to 
indicate  to  the  Indian  the  sort  of  luck  he  is  having  at  the 
bottom.     But  although  the  fish  may  be  abundant,  the  Indian 
IS  not  always  sure  of  securing  what  he  has  caught      His 
greatest  annoyance  is  the  ground-sharks  or  nurse-fi"sh,  as 
the  sailors  call  them,  which  will  often  eat  the  bodies  of 'the 
black-cod,  leaving  only  the  heads  attached  to  the   hooks 
Another  annoyance  is  from  a  small  fish  called  by  the  Haidali 
Indians  '  nee-kaio-kaiung,'  the  Blepsias   cirrhosus  (Pallas) 
GUn.,  one  of  the  family  CottidcB,  which  steals  the  bait  and 
often  gets  hooked  ;  as  soon  as  the  Indian  discovers  this  pest 
he  quits  fishing  and  goes  to  another  place.     As  the  depth 
of  the  water  varies  in  different  places  it  is  usual  to  have  a 
lot  of  spare  lines  in  the  canoe  which  can  instantly  be  knotted 
together  and  foim  a  line  as  long  as  required  ;  sometimes  two 
hundred  fathoms  will  be  used,  as  the  line  when  fully  supplied 
with  hooks  becomes  a  trawl.     A  most  ingenious  contrivance 
IS  the  sinker  used  by  the  Haidahs  in  this  deep-water  fishing. 
1  his  is  a  stone,  from  ten  to  twenty  pounds  in  weight.     A 
small  kelp  line  is  wound  round  this  stone  and  held  by  a 
bight  tucked  under  the  turns,  and  the  end  made  fast  to  the 
end  of  the  larger  line,  which  large  line  is  wound  round  this 
stone,  and  a  smaller  stone  which  serves  to  bind  it  fast  and 
as  a  sort  of  tripping  stone.     The  large  line  is  secured   in  a 
similar  manner  as  the  small  line,  by  a  loop  or  bight  tucked 
under  the  turns.     The  stone  is  then  lowered  to  the  bottom 
and   the   line  paid  out.     As  soon  as   the   fisherman   sees 
enough  pegs  floating  to  warrant  his  pulling  in  the  line  he 
gathers  in  the  slack  till  he  feels  the  weight  of  the  stone, 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES. 


145 


when  he  gives  a  sudden  jerk,  which  pulls  out  the  bight  and 
loosens  the  tripping  stone,  which  falls  out  and  loosens  the 
big  stone,  which  in  turn  becomes  detached  from  the  line 

slSker  "  ^"""'^  '"  '^^'^^^^  °^  '^^  weight  of    the 

"  On  my  arrival  at  Skidegate,  in  the  last  of  August.  i88t 

fnT"i;^H^''^  ^''  ^"^"""^  McGregor,  one  of  the  par  ners 
m  the  Skidegate,  to  send  some  Indians  to  the  west  coast  to 
procure  some  black-cod.     He  sent  four  Indians,  Scanayune 

rnlfR^^H^'  l"^T    "\^  ^^^''^^'^  ^ho  al!  belong  J^the 
Gold  Harbor  band  on  the  west  coast.     I  sent  a  sack  of  salt 
with  the  Indians,  with  instructions  to  take  out  the  gills 
remove  the  viscera  without  splitting  the  fish,  and  then  fill 
the  cavity  with  salt,  which  was  done,  and  the  fish  were 
received   in   p  rime  condition.     On   the   2d   of  September 
Scanayune  returned  with  twenty  fine  fish.     A  council  was 
now  called  to  decide  the  best  way  to  split  them.  There  w^re 
o»?h?  1>H     f'*^'"  fishermen,  present,  who  were  the  crew 
ot  the  little  steamer   Skidegate,  engaged  in  dog-fishing  for 
the  01  works    Some  were  of  the  opinion  that  the  fish  should 
be  spit  in  the  back,  like  a  salmon  ;  but  I  objected  as  I 
thought  people  would  say  they  were  the  white-flesh  'dog- 
salmon  and  be  prejudiced,  so  I  had  them  split  and  dressed 
like  cod,  and  well  salted  in  a  vat.  But  now  my  trouble  com- 

?dlt  u    ^J^l^V^^  ?Pi",i?"'  ^'  ^^'^  ^'1  the  others,  that 
the  fish  should  be  b.    reled  like  salmon  ;  but  we  had  no  bar- 
rels or  coopers,  and  the  question  was  how  to  get  them  to 
Victoria  without  rusting,  for  we  all  thought  that  so  fat  a 
hsh  would  rust  like  a  mackerel  or  salmon.     At  last  I  recol- 
lected  how  I  had  seen  halibut  treated  when  it  was    o  be 
smoked,  and  I  decided  on  that  plan.     After  the  fish  had 
been  in  salt  two  weeks  I  rinsed  them  in  the  pickle  they  had 
made,  and  piled  them  skin  side  up,  put  planks  and  heavy 
stones  on  them  and  so  pressed  out  the  pickle.     After  thev 
had  been  four  days  under  this  pressure  I  found  them  hard 
and  firm,  and  beautifully  white.      I  then  packed  them    n 
boxes  which  I  made  for  the  purpose,  putting  twenty  fish  in 
each  box  and  fillmg  up  with  dry  salt.     My  intention  was  to 
repack  them  in  Victoria  and  put  them  iii  barrels,  but  on 
examining  the  boxes  on  my  arrival  I  found  the  fish  in  such 
fine  condition  that  I  was  advised  by  experts  of  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company  to  send  the  fish  forward  just  as  thev  were  • 
and  so  well  satisfied  were  the  officers  of  the  company  with 
the  plan  I  had  adopted  through  necessity,  that  the  chief 
facor,  William  Charles,  Esq.,*"  instructed^'the    coXan;'/ 
agent  at  Massett,  Mr.  McKenzie»  to  procun.  r'l  m-  u\J^x. 


I 


146 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


resoect  r  h^H  f  """^  "^^  ^"^^^"''  '°  ^"^^  'hem  in  every 
respect  as  I  had  done,  and  to  pack  them  in  similar  pack- 

d^n'market""^'  ^  ^"^^'  '^'^  "^""'"^  "-^^^  ^'""'  '"  ^^^  L°n- 

I  hld*t?'f  '^"  ^'!f^  fish  in  every  manner  I  could  think  of. 
Lr,1  *^^  I'vejs  and  we  fried  and  found  them  delicious.  The 
females  were  full  of  eggs,  which  I  found  very  small,  about 

^,.  Th°H  •''"'"^ "P"^"'  ^^'''  ^^«  ^he  first  of  Sep  ember 
Ll  l"""  opportunity  of   ascertaining  the    spawning 

season  or  their  spawning  ground.     I  tried  the  tongSes    bu? 

cultel^'  '  xS^'fi  r."  ^'  '^'-'^^l^  ^""^"^«'  ^^  ^hev  were 
?s  too  fat  VhP  h  5'^"^°"'  ""'  make  a  good  chowder,  as  it 
IS  too  fat ;  the  heads,  however,  after  having  been  salted  we 

th"f''  T^l  '^'?'""*  ^h°^d^^-  The  best  way  fn  which 
the  fresh  fish  can  be  cooked  is  to  broil  it  like  fresh  macSel 
or  roast  it  before  the  open  fire  like  planked  shad.  After  it 
has  been  salted,  as  I  salted  those  I  put  up,  it  should  he 
cooked  by  first  soaking  till  the  salt  is  well  ou  ,  then  si^l' 
boiled  and  served  with  plain  boiled  potatoes      MadeT  J 

Or/nt  '  \Tt  ^"^  ^'^  ^  h^^^  ^^^^"-  O"  the  6th  day  o? 
October,  1883,  I  gave  George  Vienna,  the  fish  dealer  on 
Government  street  Victoria,  one  of  the  black-cod,  which  he 
hung  up  m  his  stall  for  every  one  to  examine.  O^  the  1 8th 
day  of  December  I  examined  the  same  fish,  which  had  been 
exposed  to  the  weather  in  the  stall  all  the  time,  and  it  was 
perfectly  sweet.  Mr.  Vienna  said  it  never  would  rust  i? 
r.f.n°°f  r'l;"^^-.  ^  ^^"^'^"^^»  °f  Victoria  who  had 
me  thnf  h^'  ^'"'Ir^  ^"^^'"y  «"  «^^^^^1  occa  ions,  told 

Ts  the  oil  irt^e^i' r.^'i ''^'^''' ^"^' ^^'"^°"  «^  "^-^kere? 
as  tne  oil  of  these  fish  does  not  agree  with  his  digestion 

but  he  experienced  no  such  effect  from  eating  the  fafblack-' 

"Now  .T?';^"'^  '•^'- ^"^'  "^  ^^'"^^hing  tol^e  noticed 
»h.w  TM^^''P^'™^"*«^"^y  "method  of  dry-saltine 
unon  fh'  ''''^  M  "'  P'T?  ^  ^"^^^^«  by  the  encomium^s  pas  ed 
upon  the  excellence  of  that  fish  as  tested  by  the  experts  of 
the  Boston  Fish  Bureau,  who  are  undoubtedly  some^  of  the 
best  critics  and  judges  of  fish  in  the  United  States    I  wish 

o  call  attention  to  the  economy  of  my  method  or  the  poor 
settlers  on  our  northwest  coasts  of  Washington  Territory 
and  Alaska.  All  that  is  required  for  outlay  is  the  cost  of 
the  salt  for  curing  the  fish,  and  the  nails  for  making  boxes 
which  can  be  made  from  the  white  spruce  which  abounds 
on  the  coast,  from  the  Columbia  Rive?  to  Wese'n  Alaska 

free  from  resin,  as  a!!  che  gum  is  contained  in  the  thin  rine- 
of  sap.wood  and  bark.     The  inside  is  free  from  resin    S 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES.  j^- 

markets  are  take7„th  hand  , fee'  and'oW  f'^r^*". '°  °"' 
but  it  is  rare  to  find  »n„  fiit  old-fashioned  trawis, 

thirty  fathomrof  "wit?/  O  rT^rs't^em  Sit^SfiT^K  '""'^ 
yet,  with  the  exception  of  salmon    nn^f^     •     5'^'.  ^"'  ^^ 

been  tried  for  taking  quantitteTo?  fish  ^Tf^  ^'^^  ^"' 
^«./.r«>.^,^^,,«  J^i^^™'^^^^^^^^^  want  are 

taking  fish.  If  such  merS Xle  o'^T'"'' T^"'^' '^"^ 
find  plenty  of  black-cod.  but  thev  w^M  h^  t\  *^'^.  '^" 
swift  water,  where  at  tiroes  it  is  Vey  rou^h  'fiut  t'^' 

lentTale^rrw^o^Jld^^bu^rSathfe^^^^ 

wtwou  dTaTe"vfrl"hrn';;r^^^^^^  '^^^^^^  ^^'^^'^^^^ 

find  markets  themsefves     Our  fishe'rmPn  ^°"^^  ^""^'  ^"^ 

"  The  best  season  of  the  vear  for  fating.  ki    i        ,  .    . 

Herring  swarm  in  the  bays  and  inlets  of   Aloc^o   ^     • 

the  spawning  season  in  the  spring  but  are  not      .t  ?".""«^ 

of  as  good  quality  as  wh^n  f.t:"7.^"if/_  "°'  '    that  time 


ii|  It, . 
I 


Of  as  good  quality  as  when  taken  in  net 


s  »roni  thwir  perma- 


I 


148 


If       f  I   j    :   i         I 


■Mumi 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


nent  banks  and  feeding  grounds.     The  Indians  catch  great 

anTn^r  Th^  ^^''^  ^t  ^°"^^^'  ^™^^  ^^^'^  sharp  naHs  2 
l^^^l  ?^^f  ^'^  ^^'"''  ""^^^  the  schools,  which  swim 
about  two  feet  deep,  and  the  fish  are  gaffed  out.  The  hi?l 
ring  spawn  in  salt  water,  and  their  favorite  places  are  the 
quiet  bays  along  the  shores,  and  there  every  kind  of  kelp 
and  seaweed  is  crusted  with  the  spawn,  and  as  the  tide  goes 
down  and  one  walks  along  the  beach,  every  step  crufhes 

s7e?ms  at  aU^Th'  '"T^"  'Y  '""'^  ^"^^^  '^^  f 'esh  wat 
streams  at  all.     The  most  careful  investigation  has  failed  to 

discover  their  spawn  attached  to  plants  beyond  the  reacS  of 
tide.  The  Indians  do  not  collect  the  eggs  deposited  on  the 
seaweed,  but  plant  at  half-tide  marks  fows  of  b  anchTs  of 
cedar  and  balsam,  which,  in  a  tide  or  two,  become  covered 
with  spawn  ;  these  are  replaced  by  others  and  Sing  up  to 
dry.  The  spawn  is  eaten  dried,  raw  and  cooked  in  various 
ways,  and  is  very  palatable  in  either.  These,  however  a?l 
somewhat  smaller  than  those  of  Europe,  though  fXequal 
m  quality  when  taken  in  their  prime.  There  is  a  facLrror 
Burrard  in  et,  near  the  Canadian   Pacific  railway  terminus 

tt's^rtTThe  t  P^^-^^-'  -d  f-tilizers  'madeTo"S 
tne  scraps  The  success  of  the  menhaden  fishing  in  the 
East  should  encourage  herring  fishing  in  the  West 

Comparing  my   personal    observations   made  at  sundry 
times  and  places,  I  find  the  range  of  the  true  cod,  halUxit 
samon  sea  trout  and  some  other  fish  to  be  the  same  on  both 

an'd'sUtLt'hrMrf  J'-^  'f  ^^"^^  betweenThe  fiftttS 
fond  nf  h.  P^'^^"^^^  Of  'f 'tude.  In  the  East  the  principal 
food  of  the  shore-cod  is  the  caplin,  and  the  fishermen  not 
only  use  capl.n  chiefly  for  bait,  but  they  follow  therniove- 
ments  to  ascertain  the  whereabouts  of  the  cod.  On  the  west 
side  (the  Pacific)  the  oolachan,  or  thecandle-fishV^s  the  cor 
respondent  o  the  caplin,  and  is  almost  identical  with  it  Jt 
IS  smoked,  salted  and  dried  on  the  rocks  in  the  same  way 
and  IS  largely  used  for  food  by  the  Indians,  beingTery  dJ: 

OoSan^oil  is^"^"'',"^^;,^  "'>^  ^"^  ""'  ^"^"  likeVca^dle. 
)..l     au     }  ,'s  considered  superior  to  cod  liver  oil   or  any 

stt^ncvof'thinTT-  ';•''  ''  '  ^^^''^^  ''"^'  ^bo"t  th^-- 
the  coast  TnHH'^'  !,"1''  ^  ''^^^^  ^'■''^'^  °f  barter  between 
tne  coast  Indians  and  the   interior  tribes.     The  fish  be^in 

running  about  the  first  of  March,  and  swarm  into  the  rivfrs 
and  estuaries  by  the  million  for  several  weeks  the  waves  of 

yarS  wide  and  ''''"'',"?  ''l^"  "P^"  ^^^  ^^^^^  in  Windrows  I 
th.  .n^  fi  if-       '^''^'■^'  '"^h^"  '^^^P-     This  period  should  be 

}  abrador.     They  are  caught  in  purse  nets  by  the  canoe  load. 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES.  149 

willow  roots  into  ?ed  cedar  h'^'^"^.^  k^'*^"'"'  '^^^^  ^^^^ 
capacity  each  When  the  ru^of  fi.h'^°"'  ^^?^"  ^^"°"^ 
will  put  up  about  tw^nt^'box^^of  on'   "  ^°°''  ^^^'  '"^^ 

th 'facHhi^ch  Tca^^^^^^^^^  'f  -ch  be 

knowIedgriereisanoSr  °  ''\^°-  °^.  "^^  °«^"  ^^'^^^^^ 
to  energetic  opLSorswhn  P''°''""/'y  l^""  '"^^-^^'v^  P'-ofit 
ture  them  X?ever  .Tnrc.  ^""^  ^^  ''^^  ^"^'^"«  ^o^^P- 
United  State^the  catchi^^^^^^^^^  '^  '"  ^^""'^^  "'  '*^« 

s^irr."'  r-'^a  So/s  .tT.  i"ei -r^^irr  ^t' 

strongest  evidence  to  the  contrarv  is  the  f-^fti,.,  .1'    t, 

holes    cu^   through    thl    ^        ^^  ^"  ingenious  system  of 
through  which  thevarlfhnf    !,',  ^^^'-^istant    intervals. 

.obe  sold  for  '^i.^.^^^^i^^^^^^'^^^^Sl 


15© 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


where  Many  fishermen  inclose  a  space  on  the  lake  or 
river  shore  m  three  or  four  feet  depth  of  water,  by  making 
a  pen  of  piles  or  heavy  stakes  driven  in  the  bottom.     Here 

Sr^mX^  '^M  '^'''  ^''"^  """^^^  ^"^  ^^^  until  wanted 
for  ma  ket  Numerous  pens  of  this  kind  may  be  seen  along 
the  Detroit  R.ver  and  Lakes  St.  Clair  and  Huron.  Thf 
Amertcan  Angler,  in  describing  the  entire  adaptability  of 
the  whole  body  of  this  most  economical  fish  says  .-«%he 
meat  of  this  fish  is  extremely  nutritious,  and  when  fat  and 
properly  emp  oyed  is  nearly  equal  to  veal  in  its  sustaining 
principles      When   eaten    from   the   young  fish   it    h  gh"v 

praised   in   the  shad      Every  part  of  the  fish  is  utilized 
1  he  meat  is  often  labeled  salmon,  and  is  often  mistaken  for 
hi^h,  ""l  .that  fish.     The  cartilaginous  bones  make  a 

highly  valued  isinglass,  and  the  stomach  gives  a  most  per 
feet,   clear,  and   adhesive  glue.     The  residue  is   used  as 

sTer¥;''^''^'^T"'^  considered  equal  to  S  " 
sneep.  11...  process  of  smoking  is  quite  simple  After 
being  cleaned  the  meat,  which  has  no  bones,  like  other 
fish,  IS  cut  into  strips  from  one-half  pound  to  t^o  and  ?hree 
pounds  weight,  put  into  brine  ten  or  twelve  hours  for  cur! 
ImAi.  ?  1^  f  '^°''  '™^  t°  C^xy^x^d.  then  finished  with  the 
smoke  of  hickory  or  some  hard  wood  for  ten  or  twe  ve 
hours  when  it  is  ready  for  boxing  and  shipment.     The  nel? 

thnn    h    ^^  exportation  of  "  caviar."    This  is  nothing  else 
than  the  roe  or  eggs  of  the  female  whiph,  it  Is  said,  fome- 

SoTth  rr'r^  '^'"^^'^^^  °^^h^  fi^h.  GenerallyThe 
yield  of  the  lake  sturgeon  is  one  and  two  gallons  These 
are  taken  in  hand  by  experts,  who  manipulate  them  by  sev- 
eral washings  through  sieves,  with  water  strongly  impreg- 
nated with  the  purest  salt,  obtained  usually  from  RussL  or 
\.^^^:  ""'Slt^ery  shred  and  vestige  of  flesh  and  impurity 
is  removed  The  "  caviar "  is  then  treated  to  a  certain 
seasoning  of  ingredients,  known  only  to  the  initiated  and 
carefully  guarded  from  public   ken,  and  put  up  inwater- 

ex^dudTth'  ^.^'^"/f.f'T  "5  to  1.5  J,  well  headed  to 
exclude  the  a,r.  It  ,s  then  ready  for  market  and  bears  an 
average  of  twelve  ce  .3  per  pound,  wholesale.  In  retail 
shops  1  sells  at  twenty-five  and  thirty  cents,  and  is  put  up 
If^M^K  T^'  °f -half  to  two  and  three  pounds  in  size  I 
would  be  difficult  to  give  the  tonnage  of  "caviar  "  that  is 
prepared  on  the  lakes  and  finds  its  way  largely  to  New 

Euron^t^^''^"'  ?"?,  P!?^^^'y  '"  ^*'"  largef  amounts  to 
t-urope,  and  principally  Russia  and  Germany.     One  dealer 


COMMERCIAL  FISHERIES. 


gives  his  annual  trade  at  400  kees  sav  fin  n.     ik 
kegs  of  caviar  were  received  at  fhft'in   i^      '  °°,  '^^•'  4,ooo 
Germany,  from  the  mTdXof  June    J8?t°J\he  ""T,^"^^; 
November,  from  the  United   Sta^e!,      \k        ^  """^"^'^  °^ 
small  and  dark  colored  entiJif;    -^^  ^^^^  ^''^  ^"'^6 
a  superior  as  an  apSr      f'/ 't^  '"  ^^^^^  ^"d  without 
with  onions,  peppe?  and  such  con h'  "'f'^^'^''  '^  ^^^^oned 
to  the  eater  and  spread  in  i^«    "    "'!"^'  ^'  ^'^  palatable 
eaten  with  it.  mucras  bu  te    fs  Tt  is  a  I'  hP  ^^^^^  ^"^ 
among  the  Russians,  who  make  it    n  i?.  ,?    ^  Popular  dish 
to  them  what  Limburger  cheese  is  to  th/n^f  u°"'.^"^  '^ 
American  people  are  arnH.f.if  t  •     ■^'^^  ^"^^^^     But  the 

theRussiardeHcac;%ftt;aj;te"^?       -^^^^^  "P  ^« 
the  Frenchman's  frog     tZ  taste  ha.  ^o^k""^'."^  ''  "P  *° 

rn^^hatfeSnl^^^^^^^^^^ 

or  sound.     When  taken  frnnf  ?k  ^7  •'^?  ^^^^^  ^"^  bladder 
oughly  cleansed  and  :?^^^^^^^  ^P''^,  «P^"'  ^hor- 

business.     When  drv  it^«  fh«  •^-     ,"  ^^""^  ""^erstand  the 

sells  usually  arlxsTptlund'''"^^^^^  ^"^ 

by  the  fishermen  at^fiv^e  and  sCc  cents  each^r  "'""•  ^°"^^' 
quantity  is  made  in  Detro  t  vearlv  Th.  considerable 
oneofthemostoilyofthefinnvS^"  ^  u  ^'urgeon  is 
the  usual  process  vie  dsalril^'  ^""^  ^^^"^  P"'  through 
said  to  make  a  verTlood  luhH??''"'T  °^  '^'''  ^^^^^  is 
ferred  for  greasin^nfTot'tThTnis  ' '  ^"'  ^^  ^'^^  P^^" 

RiveHn  thflriS  ^:^thwt?'T^'\^^'^^^  Sascatchewan 
in  the  river  pocke  fiust  bel^w  ?  JY"'''u^'  'P'^'  ^^^xxgton 
gather  up  wLtever  Ss  down  .T^f '  ^^T  '^^^  '^'^''  ^o 
all  the  tribes  of  suckers  do    1//    ."J-^""^  ''"'^^'  J"^'  as 

an  ingenious  harpoon  wht^  het/^comi'^ourof  \^  V? 
whenever  a  fish  is  struck  anH  f  i  worries  out  of  the  shaft 
vented  from  beiit  carHii  "f?  ^'^^"^,^'  but  which  is  pre- 
attaches  itTo  the  ftaff  "  InHr'  ^T  \  ^  ^'^^  ""«  ^hich 

where  the  fish  cL  not  be  seen"^^  ^^  ^'  '"'^'"^  ''"''" 
end  of  which  are  fastened    ill  ,  ^  "'^  ^  'P"^  P°'«'  ^t  the 

hook  through  the     nlh  .tf^     A  ""^'^^  ''"''^  *he  sharp 
ugn  me  ..ugh  skm  and  deep  mto  the  flesh.     The 


iS» 


■»'■*• 


OUS  NEW  ALASX-A. 


/  ■  )v.# 


hsh  struggles  and  the  hooks  loosen  from  the  pole,  but  are 
held  fast  by  the  line.  Then  it  is  only  a  question  of  strength 
to  get  the  lethargic  fellows  out  of  the  water,  with  may  l^  a 
hearty  wrestle  on  the  bank  to  keep  them  out. 

In  Alaska,  flounders,  anchovies,  and  sole  are  found  in 
large  numbers,  but  quite  unlike  the  fishes  called  by  the 
same  names  on  the  Atlantic  .coast.  The  sole  is  especially 
different  from  his  celebrated  European  namesake.  Dogfish 
and  sculpins  are  not  esteemed  as  edible  fish,  although  they 
are  very  numerous  and  great  nuisances  to  those  who  fish 
with  hook  ard  line.  One  kind  of  dogfish  is  beautifully 
spotted,  and  one  of  the  sculpins  {Hetnilepidohis  tracharuK 
looks  very  much  like  a  rutabaga  turnip  covered  with  warts 
with  a  sht  clear  across  the  big  end  for  a  mouth.  He  is  so 
ug^  that  old  fishermen  torture  him  just  for  his  ug'iness 

There  are  two  kinds  of  coral  found  on  the  coast,  and 
also  sponges  of  fine  texture,  not  round  like  the  recognir.d 
sponges  of  commerce,  but  palmated  with  digital  divisions 
which  might  be  made  useful  for  many  purposes  The  sea 
cucumber  is  abundant  also.  When  cured  and  dried  it 
makes  the  article  of  commerce  known  as  the  beche  de  la  mer 
highly  prized  m  China  for  food,  where  it  is  called  "trepang  '' 
A  valuable  industry  might  be  built  up  by  preparing  this 
commodity  for  market.  Indeed  there  are  lots  of  economi- 
cal  natural  products  in  this  new  and  unprospected  region 
which  might  reasonably  prompt  mercantile  effort  if  atten- 
tion were  only  called  to  them. 

The  immunity  of  the  North  Pacific  ocean  from  the  inter- 
mittent storms  which  devastate  the  Atlantic,  makes   most 
favorable  comparison  in  its  behalf  as  a  field  for  commercial 
fisheries  and  a  cruising  ground  for  fishing  vessels.  Cyclones 
are  seldom  heard  of  there,  while  on  the  Labrador  coast  and 
tnegulf  of  St.  Lawrence  alone,  no  less  than  three  hundred 
vessels  and  twelve  hundred  lives  have  been  lost  in  storms 
during  the  past  twenty  Ive  years.     Besides  this  considera- 
tion,  the  scarcity  of  fisu  in  Eastern  waters  within  the  past 
few  years  is  miking  the  fisheries  a  precarious  business. 
Let  the  disappointed  fisherman  o*  the  Atlantic  coast  mi- 
grate  to  Alaska  !     The  fishing  seasons  are  different  there, 
and  not  subject  to    interruptions  of    drifting   ice   in   the 
spring  and  rough  weather  in  the  fall  ;  and  there  is  no  dan- 
ger of  starvation,  even  if  the  fisheries  should  fail.     I  see  no 
reason  why  the  banks  and  littoral  waters  of  the  Alaskan 
I'acific  may  not  swarm  with  fleets  of  fishing  vessels  as  well 
as  those  of  Newfoundland  and  Labrador. 


^1^ 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE. 


March,  or  early  i„  April,  and  Lst  u^l  t^^  ^"^^7^^^^^  '" 
They  generally  weigh  from  four  to  twentv  L!  ""^^  J""^- 
sometimes  reach  seventy.      The  sec      P^ifnH  P°'"'^''  ^? 

its  weight  ra„gi„;T.^:;fr,«  ?rCy.firZ„'di  Th'"' 
are  severa  other  varieties  nf  c-iim^^   ^  T    .,  P®"""^.  1  here 

vals  lit.  iV.    A.,    "■'  7"'"^*  •"  "ppearance  at  stated  inter. 
SMwn      AH  ^^'T'%  ''"'"'"'■  ""d  ''^"^•"'ds  tl,e  river"  to 

Se  way'f™m'"v''irru"  B''?:"^„t,'^  "?(   i'  "^  """''"" 
coast  c^ppJl-  „';'  n-rfAlhTs'  aliTe'^oV.-he'i'asC 

many  streams  in  AlaskTwh  ch  are  blTe  >7til\^h  '''"""r* 

the  earlv  »»««,.,  -^^  r_n    _  ."  .    !  R'*'^=  **'  *"  <"sh  except  in 

-,.  ._,  ^,,„  ia«,anu  uicu  inc»c  scif-same  sea  trout, 


till 


li 


13^  U 


■I 


154 


OU/d  NEW  ALASKA. 


migratory  and  anadromous,  run  up  their  channels  to  spawn 
just  as  they  do  in  the  Canadian  Atlantic. 

For  other  varieties  of  trout  than  this,   Indian  River  and 
Saw  Mill  Creek,  near  Sitka,  the  Lake  Loring  outlet  at  Naha 
Bay,  and   other  streams,  afford  good  rod-fishing.     Sport 
with  the  artificial  fly  is  by  no  means  as  satisfying  as  it  is  in 
the  East,  or  even  in  Oregon  and  Washington  Territory,  al- 
though it  certain  times  it  is  fair.     It  may  be  said  that 
owuig  to  the  condition  of  water  as  affected  by  the  melting 
snows  in  spring,  and  the  subsequent  superabundance  of 
salmon  roe  with  which  every  crevice  is  crammed  after  those 
fish  begin  to  spawn,  even  bait-fishing  can  hardly  be  en- 
joyed except  at  certain  periods.  No  fly  will  tempt  the  trout 
nothing  in  fact  but  a  chunk  of  nasty  sticky  spawn,  which 
they  will  approach  leisurely  and  feed  on  as  daintily  as  a 
full  fed  kitten   on  a  bit  of  meat.     You   must  sink  your 
weighted  hock  to  the  bottom,  and  keep  up  a  series  of  little 
jerks  as  though  you  were  bobbing  for  eels,  and  by  and  by 
you  strike  one  ;  once  hooked  they  are  quite  gamy. 

The  Salmoiridea  is  found  here  both  in  the  lakes  and 
streams,  but  there  is  another  trout  which  differs  much  in 
appearance  from  varieties  which  I  am  familiar  with.  A  spec- 
imen ten  inches  long,  called  "mountain  trout"  by  the  In- 
dians, had  a  body  covered  with  black  spots,  from  one-six- 
teenth to  one-eighth  inch  in  diameter.  These  extend  con- 
siderably  below  the  medial  line  and  cover  the  tail  and  the 
dorsal  fins ;  the  second  dorsal  is  adipose,  but  slightly  less 
so  than  that  of  a  fontinalis,  having  a  slight  show  of  mem- 
brane on  which  there  are  four  spots.  The  ventral  and  anal 
fins  are  yellowish  in  center,  uurdered  with  red,  the  tail  is 
square,  the  belly  a  dull  white. 

That  the  spawning  seasons  of  families  of  fish  similar  to 
those  of  the  Atlantic  should  be  different  on  the  Pacific  is 
easily  accounted  for  by  the  warmer  temperature  of  t»ie 
water.  It  would  seem  that  the  laws  of  heat  and  cold  have 
the  same  effect  upon  fish  as  they  do  upon  vegetation,  order- 
ing the  seasons  accordingly  ;  and  the  spawning  of  fish,  like 
the  budding  of  trees,  may  be  advanced  or  retarded  by  mild 
or  inclement  weather  ;  stated  visitations  of  pelagic  or  anad- 
romous fish  may  be  postponed  or  even  prevented  by  cold 
weather  ;  but  the  Pacific  is  less  subject  to  these  vicissi- 
tudes  than  the  Atlantic. 

In  Alaska  there  are  few  sandy  beaches  or  gravelly  shores. 
1  he  margins  of  the  mainlands  and  islands  drop  plump  into 
many  fathoms  of  water,  so  that  thu  tide  never  goes  out—it 
merely  recedes,  and  when  it  is  lowest  it  exposes  the  rank 


RAMBLES  ALOXG  SHORE.  ,5. 

co^n^inu  ed  .heMsT^nd  '^'^  "^    "p^olfef 'rt  °i 
hard-shell  clams  and  abelones  by  the  De?k-clam;  „f     n 

geoduck,  a  sof.-shell  clam  whici  rm«imes  weths^'f  Ihf 

toothsome  oyster  the  ^hrnn?  .   T  ^""^  ^^^  luscious  and 

seen  a  native  Alaskan  oyster     h„H.      ^^  P^''"^"  ''^'  *^^^^ 

s^^?^s«:a^^SS^i}-r" 

side  of  a  regulation  -  SadSock"^thev  \,^v  ^^^^'' ■^^''''^ 
CO 'e°s":„d  'roVafcMSe  c'et'^rtr'^'  '"^  """-''"^  """ 

the  ebb  or  flood  be^iim    f  ic^f     ^"^^^"^  f"<^  tide  turns  and 
in  what  seemT^blan'in  e^o'r  ia'^dr'^d'ai';  "iT"" 

ke  the  hiir  /,f  ..   \l  1  ""^^'^'""s  anu  half  under  water, 

hey  dri        V     1    1    r' k''  ^'^'"•'"'  "^^  ^"^'^  ^^'ircl  forms  as 

......,„,  „,^.,,au5,  CQiUructmg  and  expanding  like 


I 


iS6 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


^living  pulse,  and  with  streaming  filaments  like  threads  of 
glass  steadfastly  follow  the  inexorable  '  ream  of  fate,  as  if 
strivmg  to  overtake  the  lead  ;  schools  oi  herring  and  small 
fish  of  all  sorts  swarm  in  all  directions,  skurrying  onward  and 
frettmg  the  surface  like  flaws  of  wind  ;  and  last  of  all  pre- 
datory and  with  fell  intent,  follow  the  whales  and  porpoises 
and  thresher  sharks,  tumbling,  sporting,  diving  and  feasting 
with  appetites  never  cloyed  by  repletion.  Here  and  there 
along  the  shore,  where  some  little  bight  makes  into  the 
land,  herds  of  seals  bob  up  serenely  out  of  the  water  and 
gaze  with  large  and  solemn  eyes.  All  the  atmosphere  is 
filled  with  the  softened  light  of  a  summer  haze,  and  the  air 
aloft  and  roundabout  is  noisy  with  the  scream  of  gulls  and 
terns  quartering  tne  azure  fields  on  the  wings  of  the  warm 
southwest  winds.     This  is  a  summer  picture  of  Alaska. 

As  I  stroll  along  the  seething  shore,  with  all  the  bowlders 
and  crags  slippery  and  rank  with  a  pervading  odor  from  the 
uncovered  repository  of  the  sea,  peering   aito  clefts  and 
crannies,   opening  out  rough  snarls  of    seaweed   with  my 
crooked  stick,  and  lifting  pendulous  draperies  of  soggy  kelp, 
uncoutV    creatures  with  horny  claws  and  bristling  spines 
stare  at  me  with  glassy  eyes,  clinging  defiantly  to  the  place 
of  their  exposure.     If  I  poke  at  them,  they  rise  up  on  edge 
and  snap  and  dart  and  pinch  the  stick.      Some   nettishly 
withdraw,  spitting  spiteful  jets  of  acrimony,  while  others 
attach  themselves  by  insidious  discs  or  suckers  which  no 
small  force  or  shrewd  device  is  able  to  unloose.    The  Spirit 
of  Evil  clings  not  more  tenaciously  to  human  nature.     If  it 
had  been  my  hand,  nothing  but  shreds  of  flesh  and  blood 
would  satisfy  the  grudge.     With  their  protecting  element, 
the  sea,  withdrawn,  they  are  practically  hois  du  combat,  yet 
repellant.     When  the  tide  comes  in,  they  will  be  aggressive 
enough.     It  is  not  a  nice  place  for  a  bath.     Here  are  giant 
crabs.      Close    by,  moving    inexplicably   over  the   rocks, 
there  seems  a  pewter  wash-basin,  bottom  up,  dingy  with  use, 
but  turn  it  over,  and  we  find  it  filled  with  a  tangle  of  legs' 
sprawling  and  kicking  ;    and  it  has  a  handle  a  foot  long' 
three-sided  like  a  bayonet,  serrj^ted  on  the  edges.      It  is  a 
horseshoe  crab,  more  horrid  than  hurtful.      All  over  the 
sodden  premises,  scattered  among  the  party-colored  kelp  and 
seaweeds,  are  conchs,  abelones,  periwinkles,  and   spirals, 
with  their  protruding  tenants  gasping   for   the   beneficent 
moisture  of  the  tardy  tide.     Touch  ihcm  ever  so  gently  and 
some  will  pull  in  their  heads,  and  some  thrust  them'  out 
further.     They  have  a  bland,  innocuous  look,  yet  it  one  of 
them  once  shuts  down  its  valve  on  a  presumptuous  hand, 


\ 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE.  j.^ 

the  creature  will  hold  its  arin  untH  th^  ,'a 
drowns  the  man,  for  some  of  ?hi  '''^f  *'°'"^^  '"  and 

rocks  so  that  no  ordinary  means  tllTn'''.?""^  ^"^^  ^°  ^he 
places  sand-lances  burrow  deeolv     -  ^  ■°^-     ^"  '''^' 

out  ;  and  fiddler-crabs  Ldcmw  iT'S^  """[^  ''^^'^  t^i's 
which  they  dart  when  fr^htened  In  ^^'  ^"''°^'  '"^" 
standmg  water  left  by  the  ebb  we  will  """"^  ^'^'^'^^'s  of 
or  scallop  suddenly  lift  himsHf  T  '^''V'""?^^'"^^^  see  a  clam 

and  go,  b'y  little  coLulsive^^ks  to  10^1.  ''',"'^^'  ^°"'"^ 
off.  Yes,  the  object  which  Wed  so  h  I'f'^""  ^  ^"^  ^^^^ 
mate,  almost  like  a  stone  wiH^rLl?       ^^^''  ^"^  '"ani- 

ByopenrngandshutdnghiTvalvesau^^^^^^^^         '"'  '^"'"• 
expels  the  water  from  the  IZtlT.^^  wl'  ^^'"■'^P'res  and 

m  such  a  way  that  he  can  n^oT?  v  ^  ^^.'''■''  J°'"s  the  two. 
clear  of  the  gVund  I  J^ajpose  he  ^'"'^  '^^'^"^'^  ^'^^  ^^^e; 
change  his  position  but  W  can  he  ter.""^^  \^\^h^^  to 
go  with  his  shell  shut?  or  doc'she  take  t^  ';;  ^"^  ""^^'^  *« 
go-lucky,  where  he  may  land  >  ''^^"'^^''  ^^PP^" 

.    One  can  not  always  tell  forrertnJn  ,  u-  u 
'ng  creatures,  and  which  a  e  inor?"    ^'"^^  ^'^  '^"^'^"t  liv- 
for  instance,  is  a  cluster  of  uS^^^^  «^^^' 

cut  off  six  inches  above  the  ^fn,  n^       i  rT,  ''^"^^  °^  ''^cds 

Keep  quiet  for  awhrirandblSsSso^e'^^'"'^  "'^'^  ^^^^'•• 
begm  to  protrude  from  every  one  and  fin  "^n""'  ^^P'"  ^'" 
perfect  bloom.     It  is  like  m^ai^  I'.  "/'.">'  ""^^ure  into  a 

We  think  they  are  nat  raSrs  b'u'rtVe'''"^  •' 

less  and  slimy  mollusks  camfTi  f^'  f^^^-  '''^  ^"'^  ^ense- 
forthet^ble,andthepurnirfn-nt'  ^'^;'f''  ""^  ^g'-^^able 
one  picks  up  rough  substances  ik-h>'  ^  ■  ^'"'-  ^°  ^''° 
are  coral  insects  in  their  cases  soft  .hh'  '^"''  ^"^  '°  '  '^ev 
strings  of  sea-weed  litt  eSbsSe  )•'"''>' =  "'"•^^  fi"d  on 
are  eggs  of  fishes.  I^wet  cive  nr.'h'H'''  ^J'*"'^  Perchance 
churning  waves  starfilh  nf  nl       '     ''''^'^  ^"^  smoothed  by 

likecolllestoreesSsh^Trr^^^^^^^^ 
twenty-two  fingers  or  points  and  of  fri  V*    '•*''^''^^''^"  and 
purple,  pink,  dark-red,' ydlowSrab.nH^^'  ""l"*^""'  S""^^"' 
the  crabs  and  prawns  eft  bv  the  thh   1-^?^  ''"^■'''  '"^"^  all 

their  motionless  bodierselUomnr.v^^  ^"^'P  ^^er 

least  bit  out  of  position  '^''^"'"  P'^^^kmg  them  to  stir  the 

anc,  wherever  thC;;"rrrsunkeV" 'for  trV''  '''  "'--'^«' 
pmk  and  purest  white  erowTn     iff         T^'  anemones  of 

only  more'  mysteriousljf beau  ifu  t  [h  "^''^'^  '"^"^  '"'^«' 
acter  and  blending  of^nim^td  JemabfeT'"'"^" ''^^'•■ 
there  are  many  kinds  of  the  reou Isive^n,  f        ^"'''"'-     ^"^ 

^«h,  g^^-..»g sometime,  to  g.gantic  sizes  •  creaturTs  .uch  aj 


m 


158 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


■|H 


i 


we  used  to  think  were  mere  fictions  of  gross  fable,  but  are 
terrible  realities,  though  seldom  seen.  And  yet  the  little 
ones,  only  a  few  inches  long,  perhaps  have  all  the  villainous 
attributes  of  their  superior  kin— malicious  eyes  aflame,  and 
yearning  tentacles,  which  seem  to  shrink  whik  momentarily 
alert  to  fling  out  their  inexorable  clasp  upon  the  wrist  or 
arm.  And  there  are  ink-fish,  which  in  their  natural  element 
eject  a  liquid  cloud  to  befog  their  pursuers  or  blind  their 
victims— double-dyed  scamps,  who  advance  backward  by 
jerks,  and  look  one  way  when  they  are  going  the  opposite. 
And  on  every  landwash,  wh?n  the  tide  is  out,  are  stranded 
jelly-fish,  limp  and  flabby,  which  blister  where  they  touch 
the  flesh,  and  beautiful  medusae  with  stings  like  nettles,  and 
great  black  sea-spiders,  ugly  but  harmless,  and  shark's  eggs 
which  look  like  leather  wallets.  How  strange  the  marvels 
which  the  ebbing  tide  reveals  ! 

Outside,  along  the  shore,  are  large  areas  of  amber-colored 
kelp,  with  intervals  of  open  space,  where  there  is  splendid 
trolling  with  a  spoon  for  a  fish  of  the  genus  Sebastichthys 
{S.  viclanops)  locally  known  as  "  kelp-fish  "  and  *'  black  sea- 
bass  ";  but  they  are  not  bass  at  all,  although  somewhat  like 
the  Micropterus  of  the  East.     Their  play  on  the  r.  d  and  line 
IS  not  so  vigorous,  but  upon  the  whole  they  answer  very 
well  as  substitutes  for  the  favorite  game-fish  of  our  eastern 
inland  waters.     Fishing  for  them  after  this  method  is  better 
sport  than  hauling  up  their  deep-sea  kindred  hand  over 
hand,  from  hidden  depths  so  many  fathoms  down  that  they 
come  to  the  top  drowned  dead,  with  their  eye-baMs  out  of 
the  sockets,  and  their  air-bladders  reversed  and  protruding 
from  their  gaping  mouths.     There  are  seven  species  of 
Chtridie,  the  largest  of  which— the  "kultus  cod  "—reaches 
sixty  pounds'  weight.     Indians  troll  for  them  with  a  strip  of 
halibut  belly-skin  wound  on  a  single  hook.     In  such  hours 
of  pastime,  life  afloat  is  enlivened  by  watching  the  bird-life 
along  shore— the  enormous  flocks  of  fish-crows  which  hang 
around  the  islands  and  visit  chosen  places  regularly  to  per- 
for-n  their  ablutions  and  await  the  ebbing  tide  ;  the  solitary 
sand-pipers  which  run  about  the  rocks,  and  the  wisps  of 
beach-birds  which  continually  flit  from  cove  to  cove  ;  the 
black  brant,  which  also  have  their  stated  feeding-place's  on 
the  tidal  flats,  breeding  here  on  the  inshore  lakes  ;  the  bald 
eagles  and  ospreys,  which  sit  in  stately  watch  on  the  tallest 
firs  or  hover  above  the  water  spaces  ;  the  big  horned  owls 
in  the  secluded  shadows  ;  and   the  few   little   song   birds 
which  venture  to  lift  their  voices  in  this  wilderness.     Of  the 
avifauna  of  Alaska  the  sea-fowl  constitute  bv  fu'  the  largest 


''"  ""^'pilt^ _. 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE.  j.„ 

proportion,  breeding  on  the  rocks  fli,  ,.r  fv,.    u 
less  numbers,  but  other  soecies  fin .t Ik  ^  ^^  '^°'^  '"      >»"*- 
so  prefer  the  wooded  dfstnV      5,       ^  ""^f '  '""^  ^^^^"^  ^"d 
lie  between  the  YukoVandU.;  A  ctirjce  n  ""'jf^  "  f^'^^ 
the  snow  goose,  the  white  fronted    oosPth;  '"."^^  ^''^ 

or  wavy,  the  blue  brant,  and  a  r^aioritv  Afth  ^T^?'^  ^foose 
on  the  coast  in  the  seasons  of  ."?  ^  "  ^  °/  ^^^  ^"^^5  found 
wardr„igrations,amoTwhi^^^^^^^^^  -"d  south- 

harlequins,  brov^n  ducks  v^dg^on  sori.  t.il'^  "mergansers, 
canvas-backs,     golden-eves    ^i?'  ^P^S^'^^^s,  surf-ducks, 

shufflers,  buttV  fat  sca\ms  an  7ess'''  ''"''^^'  ^'^^^^> 
remain  in  the  vicinity  of  sftka  ^ii  t??"'^"P^'^' ^"  ^^  ^^hich 

their  nesting-places^ea  ly  i^fMaiS  'r'"V^  ""^'^  ^^ 
mallards  breed   about  the   mnm.T       ,  ^''''^'^^  geese  and 

Green-winged  tealt d  b/  Iw"  g  dTe"al  t^^^'T  ^''^''^ 
They  are  the  1    .t  to  come  aiT .1,     i  '^"'^^^''"""th. 

Puffins,  guilemots,  coots  sea-^fgon^  Jhi^^  f  '"  ^'"  ^f ' 
hagden,  and  gulls  are  found  in  the  south  of^Al  T"''.  P"'?''' 
all  breed  further  north  'J'herVVo  «  of  Alaska,  but  they 
birds  for  variety,  ?he  list  nd  .d  n  ""  m  '^°^'"^  °^  ^^^ach 
plover,  Wilson  snipe,  gray  sn  f  semfnt"''''^''^^  "P'^"^" 
san.I-piper,  Bairds  sfnd  piner  '^^-P^'-^^^ted  smpe,  least 
sand-piper  ring-necks  nd  a  r^V  ^  i^  ,''"''^^'  ^^''ick-bellied 
some  of  whichie  found  in  llT  '""'^  "^  fo^r-toed  plover, 
fifty  brace  to  a  gun  is  no  ba^T^^  so  tha 

wild  fowl  from  North  Alaska  foLf."''°"-  '^'^^  '"^^ts  of 
Francisco  and  belorwhere  t  era'/e  TrLf ""  ^°  ?^" 
farmers  pay  men  to  shoot  them     fH.  ,     numerous  that 

which  tarry  or   remain  on   th^   aV'',"'' '^'^'^^  ^^Ids.  '^^hose 

sport  among  theSds  n  th.  n  '"'^"  ,^°^''  ^"""''d  g'-eat 
kelp  grows ^upon  w  S  thev  feed^'T  "^T'''^  ""'''''  ^'^^ 
opposite  to  where  thevnrpfZr  I-'»ndmg  on    the  side 

stiJ   them   up    and  the   J-      8^'  Pf'V^'  '^"^  ^''^  boat  to 

shoot  themT  t1"ey  rise  th  oZT^h^'^^  ^""'  *"^^'^  P"'^i''""> 
islands.  "^         through  the  openmgs  between  the 

^r^t^s^^V^or^  '''''r''^  ««'d  ^or  the  nat- 
abondLing  I  vemure  to  s?'  T^  "''°  ^^'^  ^"^"^^r  vag- 
wiU  beconfe  a  favo  te  criWz  n^  "'  " V^  ""''''  ^"^"••e  -t 
Perhaps  th.  AmS  Ca"-   1    '""'  ''"'""  ^'''''''• 

a  trip  'to  its  lane  ToSed  w-  ers  neTr'''''°"  ^'"  '''^''^  ^'^^'-^ke 
month  between  steamers  '"'""'*^'*'  ^"^  '"en'ain  a 

wi^d:^h^  :!;;;:;|;l  cS-aKJn  °^  ''-^  •"'-^'  •- 

^"     ' '^  ^^^"  ^P"^'  ^^  '^'■"•"'  ^or  the  fish  get  jammed 


k 


I 


i6o 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


""scomJ'"?!'''"  hardly  move,  and  the  bears  have  only  to 
saiiet>  atter  which,  in  berry  time,  they  mav  take  tr.  th^ 
woods  for  their  dessert.  In  some  localities  ^ose  to  th^ 
towns  and  villages,  the  bear-paths  are   plenty    and  woJn 

loiiowing  them  to  a  terminus  too  abrupt  to  be  nleasanf 
During  the  month  of  August  the  mosquitoesand  flie   are  "o 
blood-thirsty  and  persistent  in  the  t  mber  as  to  drive  not 
on  y  the  deer,  but  the  bears  themselves  to  h  gh  a  dtudes 
It  IS  said  that  carcasses  of  dead  bears  have  been  found 

firi  h^H  Tt^^'^"^  P^"^'^^^  ^y  starvation,  having  been 
first  blinded  by  the  flies  so  that  th.y  could  no  f^orale 
Once,  in  the  province  of  New  Brunswick  I  rememhpr^t?; 
unlhi'^f";  'fr  '""^^^  ^""^^^  '"  thirfay  so  tSie  was 
ms  1  fe.     In  September  the  snow  on  the  mountains  drives 

an?r;j/c^^?h"'"''^^  fT  ''''''  "^^-'  -<i  they  swim  con- 
stantly from  the  mainland  to  the  islands,  manv  of  which  -ire 

interspersed  with  grassy  flats,  where  good  gra^zing  is  found 

1  hey  are  then  easily  captured  /// /rL/Z/.f  often    noairs 

Bears  also  are   caught  in  the  same  way,  the  one  on  board 

the  regular  mad  steamer  having  been  picked  J eTvoZe 

1  here  is  fine  deer-shooting  about  Wrangell,  and  some  of 

fi^vTS  huT  'TsrHH?  '7"^'"'"  ^«'^-''^'  -"  o1 
dollar  afanyUme.       "^^^^^  ^^  "'"'^"^  ^""  ^«  ^^^^^t  for  a 

wimff^i/f  Pf'?'^?^'^  j""^'^  °f  t'^e  Alaskan  forest,  with  its 
windfalls  of  timber  and  profusion  of  berries  and  succulent 
mosses,  constitutes  both  a  nursery  and  a  protection  fo"iu 
fauna.     It  is  a  veritable  paradise  for  bears,  whom  nei  her 

"  h'ole"  in"  forX' ''^'^  '^""Tu  ''  '^^  ^^^^  se'ason  when    h^; 

nole  in     for  the  winter.     The  boldest  and  most  oractired 

Indian  IS  afraid  to  go  into  the  woods  for  game  for  fear  of 

anTblac^r  ^ur'^sh^  '"'"^"^ '"  Alaska-g'rir.fy.c^^Srn 
ana  D.ack— to  furnish  every  man  on  the  Pacific  with  a  ran 

and  overcoat,  and  leave  breedingstocK  enough  for  next  vear's 

r n?S^-  v^f'-"?''  '^''^  '«  ^  ^^'"^II  'Albino  bfar  found  on  thi 
coast,  wh:ch  is  known  as  the  coast  bear.  Being  white  nnd 
a  good  deal  about  the  ice  in  winter,  some  have  supposed  it 

mut  groulJ  r  rf'l"  '^^^'  ^"^  '^'  ^oologi:ts  di^p'utelt  ' 
ame  grouse,  ruffed  grouse,  spruce  grouse  and  nt-irmiain 
are  very  abundant,  but  hard  to  shoot,  and  difficult^  oSer 
when  shot,  by  reason  of  the  forest  angle  I  have  Ifeard 
from  those  who  are  familiar  with  them,  their  descriptions  of 
the  grand  scenery  among  the  mountains,  wh^e  c  agHnd 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE. 


i6i 


fn.ni  f         ^^u  ^'^^r"^t^d  with  deep  caflons  in  which  were 
located  many  beautiful  lakes,  fed   by  everlasting  brooks 
wh.ch   found  their  origin  in  great  glaciers  and   immense 

nnl^h.  k'^''^''?^  '"°^'.^^  lofty  barren  plateaus,  where, 
on  the  bare  rocks,  ptarmigan  were  in  profusion  and  of 
sky  parlors  high  above  the  timber  line,  where  the  mountain 
goats  and  sheep  make  their  aerial  home;  but,  as  I  have 
never  reached  the  higher  altitudes,  and  my  own  'experience 

^aiklT?"^  ^^^'"^.^^' ^'^"  chiefly  confined  to  beaten 
trais,!  feel  privileged  to  copy  from  one  of  Capt  Beard- 

and  so  "quote?  ''  '"'  '"  "  '^""^  '^^'^  "  '^  P^^P^  ^"^  ' 

"  Three-quarters  of  an  hour  carried  us  up  a  height  of 

one  thousand  feet  and  a  distance  of  three  quarters^  of  a 

T^lrl^rf  T  ^"T^'  ^^^"'■^■'^^  ^"P  ^^^  fi"'«hed,  that  three! 
quarters  of  an  hour  was,  in  some  cases,  a  very  moderate 

amount  of  time  in  which  to  advance  a  quarter^of  the  dfs! 
tance      When  at  each  step  the  perpendicular  gain  is  twenty    ' 
and  the  honzonta    about  three,  inches,  a  mile  is  a  long 

rJSh  ^';^^/^'»^r"^^  its  way  through  a  dense  fores? 

m/hv  rf  .r  r^'  ^""^  'P'"'^'  ''■^^^'  ^'th  ^  fe^  yellow  cedar. 

Many  of  the  former  were  of  such  dimensions  that  a  spot  in 

the  Adirondacks,  so  well  covered,  would,  for  its  «  bark  "  or 

counts,     prove   very  valuable.     When  we  reached  Bald 

ot^tS  U^u'sld'^Tef  ^'  ^'^^^  -"'^'^  ^"^  ^^^  --^^^ 

lf^:^tfSr^t^^Sl:r?-^ 
sharp  ridge,  or  "  hog-back,"  which,  on  each  side,  wis  flanked 
by  deep  ravines,  way  down  in  whose  depths  we  could  hear 
the  rushing  of  waterfalls,  and  occasionally  the  click  of  the 
WP  Poni?'  ''  ^'i!-^'^  f '  prospecting  in  all  directions  ;  but 
Tid  fnl  ^^^,  "°^hing,  for  a  dense  fog  filled  the  ravine  and 
hid  from  us  the  grand  mountain  scenery  which  at  this  part 
of  our  journey  we  knew  still  towered  above  us.  An 
occasional  momentary  clearing  away  of  a  small  bit  of  the 
hist.n?  ^  n'  "'  P''7°'^'"ff  ^"d  tantalizing  peeps,  but  for  an 

mSnc^c  T  ^  ^^^^'^\  ""*  ^""^  ^'■"'^  "-'''  ^'-^^^  loose  from  its 
moorings  and  went  crashing  down  with  thunderous  noise. 

wpMh  ^''\^''''''^  ^he  timber  ;  our  trail  was  no  trail,  fo^ 
we  trod  on  the  primitive  rock  ;  but  there  was  no  dnnjrer  of 
our  getting  off  fron.  it,  for  it  we  could  see,  and  northing 

^  Tn„,     K    .f  ^^  ^'"'^  ^""^  °"^  °^  ''^^  ^''"l^e'-  '"y  «i«^ash  gave 

-  rh  Jt""  .'"'  T\  ''"PP"^-  ^^  I  J"'"«^l  l^i'n  he  pointed  to 
"chicken."  .nnH    fhon    not    for*-   f-ct    t  ^^^  y-y^ 

-  ,    J,  noi  lortjr  tcet  uway,  i  saw  my  first 


i6l 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


■ 


J;  |H 


ptarmigan.  1  here  were  four,  and  they  ran  behind  a  bush 
of  low  hemlock,  or  ground  pine.  I  advanced  slowly,  ready 
to  take  them  a.  tP^y  rcse  ;  but  they  wouldn't  rise,  and 
dodged  in  and  around  that  clump  like  a  woodpecker  around 
a  tree.  So  at  lust,  satisfying  the  sportsman  part  of  my  con- 
science by  resolving  to  aim  only  at  their  heads,  I  let  go  at  a 
couple,  who  were  in  line,  and  killed  them,  the  other  falline 
to  my  fnend  s  shot,  as  he  rose  at  last.  The  bird  we  I 
simply  beautiful  ;  their  backs  and  tail  feathers  were^ike 
tlioseof  our  ruffed  grouse:  ^le.r  wings  and  breasts  pure 

If  thk?  "T"""  ^"^  ^?  two  varieties  of  this  bird.  Those  found 
at  this  level  are  as  I  have  described  ;  higher  up  they  are 
nearly  snow  white,  with  black  tail  feathers  bordered  v;h 
ttot'V'"^'  fl'  d^^f^^-'^hers  of  the  back,  instead  of  as  with 
those  found  lower  down,  being  brown  grouse-colored  and 
predommating  are  nearly  black,  and  simply  amount  to  spots, 
for  each  dark  feather  is  surrounded  with  vvhite.     They  may 

Thev'L'T',^"f'  ^'  '''^^'''"'  ^''"^^^  °f  transformation^ 
one  I  [f  ^  '"  .  ^  ^u''""^  '^^^  ^"^'^  averaged  fifteen  and 
one-half  ounces,  the  heaviest  weighing  eighteen),  and  are 

very  delicious  especially  at  this  season,  when  their  food  is 
almost  altogether  huckleberries  ;  later  they  feed  on  spruce 
and  other  bitter  food,  and  their  flavor  suffers.     They  are 
very  tender.     No.   7  shot  were  very   killing,   and   it   was 
impossible  to  preserve  a   good  specimen.      The   feathers 
came  out  in  handsful,  as  they  were  gathered,  and  our  dog's 
mouth   looked    as   though  he    had    the    hydrophobia,    so 
thoroughly   blood-and-feathered   was  it.     In  skinning    the 
skin  tore  like  wet  blotting-paper,  and  an  attempt  to  carry 
one  by  the  leg  involved  a  fracture  of  the  same,  if  held  at  any 
angle      Ihey  are  full-blooded,  bleed  a  great  deal,  and    I 
should  judge  very  hot-blooded,  for  they  spread  themseh'es 
in  great  flocks^  on  the  surface   of  the  snow  patches,  with 
wings  extended,  as   hens  when  dusting  themselves      Th-y 
have  a  peculiar  call,  a  grating  sound,  which  often  betrayed 
to  us  their  vicinity  when  the  fog  was  too  dense  for  us  to  se^ 
them.     As  we  got  above  the  snow  we  could  get  a  view  of  a 
portion  of  the  banks  nearest  to  us,  and  saw  on  it  many 
birds,  but  we  soon   learned  that  it  was  mere  slaughter  to 
shoot  them,  or  any  flying  over,  for  they  would  go  sliding 
and  plunging  into  the  abyss  below,  and  our  si  washes  could 
not  be  persuaded  to  trust  themselves  on  to  the  snow,  for 
they  feared  the  starting  of  the  glacier. 

"We  arrived  at  the  summit  of  this  part  of  the  mountains 
at  about  4:30,  and  it  was  clear  enough  for  us  to  obtain  a 


.  ;t  1 

rliT 
I 


;  #"« 

A', 

m 

1 

1 

fil      1 

*•■■     ! 

f 

Am 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE. 


165 


aE^^^  :'  J:;'^  '"  '^"?^"  P^-'^'  a  few  hundred  feet 

tiful  lake's t'  t."    ;:^;'onn  ?ted  bv  '"^i'^'^"'  ^"°  '^^^"- 

we  saw  the  cab-      .     he  vS  i,//^^^^^ 

their  mine  sor-e  h   ■  '    w  f    .      "^'ners,  their  arastra  and 

canon      The  s'^onr^  A.tl^l  "?  'i'^  °PP°^'t^  ^^"  of  the 

i™  M.S.',;  ;?."„S,'  a,'.;";".,":  ■■■>•  » 

Westminster  whinh    ^    ""''  -^"^"^^  ^"  ^"^^  ^'^^rict  of  New 
thrTS 'bears  aSS^on^  ^T'^'"-^^-  guns,  besides 

long  hair,  as  m  tne  common  goat.     The  horns  are'sTx 


• 


i66 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


to  eight  inches  long,  awl-sliaped,  ringea  at  the  base  and 
bending   shghtly  baclcward.      These    like  the    hnofl 
shinmg    black,   like   polished   ebony;  and    or  id fesTf 
spoons,  forks,  etc    make  beautiful  ornaments  when  "klmuMv 
carved.     Notwithstanding  its  name,  this  anho^Il  is  rV^arded 

by  a  raethod  of  hu,ui„«  known  as  stalliin,  and  .1,  Sfa 
tu,n  outfit  of  a  nat.ve  would  ue  a  belted  shirt  osgnfrrel" 
skn,    a  grotesque  head-dr.ss  itiade  of  fur  clo°e  seal  ,k  „ 

as  a  peV'^ock sfn"^  ",'  '"^  ""«•  -■'!■'"- spelosl^^e 
son  C  r  fles  '  iZ^  '""j,^'""^,^.  ■aw-hide  ropes  and  Hud! 
auu  uay  riiies.     Up  on  the  ndL'^es  hark  nf  Mt   Cf   r-r 

which  constitute  a  favorite  h.lTng  g  ound  for  .oaS''i^ 
found  a  bear  similar  to  the  "  roach^ack  "  or  •<  sifver  in '' 
the';^s  o7  h?i  '"'  f""  'f^"^'^"'  ^'"-'^  under-coK  wfth 

soJth'tlrlnfh.''^  '^'  ^'^''^'■^''  '^^^P  ^^^^"^J^  "^"ch  further 
thP  L    1  '^'^m'"'  ^'''^"  ^^  *he  mountains  of  Arizona  on 

the  south  as  well  as  to  the  sphagnous  barren  of  the 
north       Its    habitat  is    by   no   meJns    confined  to   niih 

^ugl.  4i"?'  t"d  r"r'"^'  *??"^^  ''  ^«  -'tricted '^o 
rougn  .egions      It  delights  in  table-lands  and  dry  mesas 

not  so  much  for  the  precarious  pickings  of   tSr  scant 

vegetation  as  for   the  outlook   they  afford   agamst   sur 

prises   from   enemies.     Up  to  six    years  ago   it   was   no 

unusual  to  shoot  them  on  the  Yellowstone  ri?er-blu7fs  frcm 

decks  of  passing  steamers,   the  land  back   of     le   b  If^ 

be  ng  broken,  but  by  no  means  mountainous.     Stalking   he 

mountain  sheep  ,s  extremeiy  delicate  work,  requiring  much 

In       n  .'    .         ?"''^'    ''"^^  '^    ^'■^"'•ds   "^>t   only    pelt 

v".    'Tf'/'"     T"''^'^''  '"""°"   «"^»    horns  of^much 
value  for  dishes  and  sundry  domestic  utensils.     Not  ne-ir^v 
so  many  of  these  are  killed  as  goats  in  Ala.ka  ;  indeed  tc 
A    :[  ^""^  ""^'''"I'teuiy  far  the  most  numerous  of  the  two 
Alaska  seems  to  be  the  ultimate  preserve  of  their  bree' 

i:tlSo^^r^^^  ^^^^™'"^^^  wit^^ul^n^'eVK 
uomtstication.       I  he   sheep   is    much  the   larger  animal 

reaching  upward  of  200  pounds  in  weight,     if  has  been 

aptly  described  as  having  the  head  of  a  sheep  and  It  iK^d? 


RAMBLES  ALONG  SHORE. 


167 


Of  a  deer.  The  horns  of  the  male  are  marvelouslv 
immense  cu.vmg  backward  and  outward  until  they  form  a 
cucle  whose  circumference  may  reach  three  feet.  Such  a 
horn  would  measure  six  inches  in  diameter  at  the  base,  and 
vToulVJ;'^  ""^'"'^  when  split,  steamed,  spread  and  shape^^ 
woulJ  measure  almost  a  foot  in  width,  with  length  to  suit 
1  he  horns  are  often  badly  splintered  as  the  resulf  of  fight, 
ing  but  not  from  pitching  headlong  over  precipices  accord- 
ing to  hunters'  fables.  The  female  horn  is  much  seller  and 
nea  ly  erect,  with  very  little  backward  curve,  a  fact  which  wm 

^oat  L'^v""'  '^'  'Y'  ^^'"^  confounded  with  mountlin 
goats  by  mexpenenced  persons  who  perhaps  never  saw  them 
except  at  a  distance.  The  color,  however,  should  readUy  di^ 
tmguish  the  two,  a ;  the  sheep  in  summer  area  wood-br^own 
and  often  darker  while  in  winter  they  are  never  pure  white 

of  the'lS'nk    '^'  'T  '"^'^^">^'  ^"^^^^^^'  ^"d  ^  portion 
of  the  buttocks  are  white.     In  spring  the  old  rams  a-e  a 

n0tlf.1T  r,  ^T'H"^'^  '^'  ^°^'  '^  ^t'ff  ^"d  wire-haired! 
not  half  the  length  of  the  goafs,  but  it  is  underlaid  by  a 
fine,  thick  wool  Successful  hunters  stalk  them  in  the 
early  morning  when  they  are  feedi.ig  low  down,  after  first 
having  climbed  convenient  heights  to  reconnoiter.  When 
a  herd  is  discovered,  the  most  cautious,  patient  and  wilv 
ties  of\he^  '1"  ^^"'*^^^  advantage' o'f  such  inequali' 
ties  of  the  land  as  favor  his  approaching  unobse-ved  will 
bring  in  the  most  meat.  At  noon  the  sheep  retire  to  The 
sky-parlors  for  rumination  and  siestas 


ri'.'- 


THE  GLACIER  FIELDS. 


from  Ponla'foretr"  sl.t"  Tl"  ''=  "«"«''Iy  trips 

glaciers  can  be  seen    incluflinVVh^  f.     -,        '^"^''''^^^^ 

Perouse  and  Crillon.  in  which   so  many  Xie  r;-.rth  ^^ 

purely  glacial  scenery      The'^Muir  and  w'/  ''''^'"'^  *" 
are  spurs  or  outflow/ nf  ih»  and  Davidson  glaciers 

unbro'ken  expanse  of  four  hLS^^i^^^^^^^^  '^^  ^" 

lie  over  the  ^ihole  domaTn  of  SScdaid     't^^^^ 

ultimate  objective  ooint  nf  curi,;  /     ^  "^  ^^^""' '«  the 

have  become  accusned   to    hf'''V^M'-^^        ''"^''^'y 
Mediterranem   wifh  aT  '^^   unfamihar    blending  of 

teristlo'thrNo    h  iWic%'^  '^^  exchisively  chfrac! 

the  astouncrnrrevelifion  wWch  'n^'?^^^^  ^^""^P^^^^  ^"^ 
the  head  of  ( i lacier  HnvThi  A  ^"^""^  '-^^ 

and  twenty  miles  no  S.s^^o  Shin'  "'^f-  °""  ^""^--^d 
fifty-nine  degrees  and  twenty '^i':'  Tt'is  the'r^ef'^"'^;.'^ 
most  northern  point  rearhpri  ,7n  7k  f'  ^"^r^f^^e,  the 

excursion    steamers       slfl/n    '  ^  '■*'^'"'*'"'  ^'"'P'  "^  ^^e 

that  poiyglo  seule  nentts  soiuh  ^U  '"  '•'  ^'''^'^^^'  ^^"' 
place  in  the  anticinations  nf  ?h  u  "^^"P'^^  a  secondary 

glacier  have  beerin  nirei    ^''  ''''"'^  conceptions  of  a 

MatterhornorSne  ^Br'cfly^ri'rw.'r  '''^^''''^'  "^  ^'^^ 
glaciers,  althou.rh  "n^ler  the^er^^l^^^^^^  '^  ^""  ^^ 


THE  GLACIER  FIELDS. 


169 


once  overwhelminjr  anrnmniof;  "' "T^^^^riand.  1  here  the 
mountain  vaHevs  fo  the^eie  n?  t  '"°^'  ^^^'^^^  ^''^^  ^^e 
longer  suprj/tre  Glacial  Jl  ^^'u  '^P"^^''  Peaks,  no 
Thf  ice-fiffi  havf  dw1ndledTo^''^^^^^^  material  for  be'rgs. 

their  discharge  is/fortremo^tnnrffl^"\^'f^  ^'■"^''  ^"^ 
'heir  bulk  isdissinatPr?h,?f  P      '•^"'''^''*^°"S:hmuchof 

the  warm  ear^h'SThf  lo^rarS'r  "^,f -^P^'- >to 
which  has  recently  been  investiSd  hv  n.  ?"  Greenland, 
the  ice-fields  were  found  trcoveffh.  .n^  V  'r,^  ^^P'orers, 
one  thousand  five  hunded  Ssfro^^T  %''''"  ^  P^"  ^°^ 
furthest  discovered  Doinf  ^'^/^f"."^  ^^Pe  Kirewell  to  the 
unknown  Out  of  the  .Im.?  '.^^'^  breadth  is  absolutely 
desolation  pours  the  treat  °,..i'"^'^^^  ^"^'^  ^^  ^^'^'^ 

walls  of  rock  a  thousand  ?etthS  '"ltTf™^,"f  .'"^'''^''S 
and  is  washed  bv  the  wavVL  lit,  .!  '"*"'  "'""^  ""=  s«a, 

From  tl,^-,  ■n,     ■  ^*  ^"^  ""''i'  coast  line. 

seen  one  off  the  cn'\<n  n(  t  ^k    ^        .  •    "cret!5()le.     I  hive 

be  twonnles'irran?  h;t"t^:ttt"1Lt"™'fi''' 
great  mass  was  sloi  ^hed  nffVnfrTt        .}    .^"  =  •'"*^'  ^^is 

wall  with  on.  tremeudous  lavage  T  ^^'  """^^^'^'^^  '^ea 
great  ship  le^  4The  w  iv'  wP'  P  ""^^'  ^"^  •''"'•&«'  ^s  a 
petually  art  '  T J  L  ?  ^  '""""^^'ns  of  ice  are  per- 
and  ro.r  I  ke  .,;     -\^uS^.      ''^'''^  an  intermittent  eras! 

co.,.notion  ca^b.:  he^d  L  Sr^-UK  '''  ''V''^  ^'''' 
a<Jrift  In  the  warmer  rM.rl. A      r '     "''  ^''^"  after  they  are 

areoonJ^.y^Mrnnt  i^l"''^^y  ''^^  -^^^'^  erosion,  they 


'■■1 
■14 


170 


OUR  iXE IV  ALASKA. 


agonizing  throec  IS  death;   so,  while  they  were  innocently 
observing  iheir  phenomena  through  their  glasses,  the  timid 

to  nlrn'^"  K^  circumspect  enough,  roughly  ordered  them 
to  turn  their  backs  ! 

The  glaciers  of  the  North  Pacific  are  much  smaller  in 
comparison  with  those  of  Greenland,  but  the  M-iir  is  three 
miles  long  with  a  perpendicular  face  of  four  hundred  feet 

acrosf'^lfe  f  H  ^Tf?  'T'^'^^\  ''  ^'^^"^'^  ^^^  entirely 
across  the  head  of  the  bay.     Its  breast  is  as  blue  as  ^ur- 

quoise      At  a  distance  it  looks  like  a  fillet  rent  from  the 

azure  sky  and  laid  across  the  brow  of  the  cliff.     When  the 

full  blaze  of  the  south-western  sun  lights  up  its  opalescence 

It  gleams  like  the  gates  of  the  celestial  city^    I  suppose    S 

an  iceberg  of  no  insignificant  size  is  sloughed  off  f rorsome 

portion  of  Its  sea  wall  as   often  as  once  in  five  minutes 

?^tf inn '"^  f^'^""""'/  't'^°"'  ""^P^^^^"*  "^^'^  than  a  limited 
..fui  and  most  of  them  break  up  into  comparatively 
small  fragments  before  they  are  fairly  launched  on  ther 
Tr7uli  J^^'-ney      It  is  an  axiom   that  mechanical  forces 

cln  h.tin'TP'"'^'"^'^K^y  '''"''■  P^"^"^^^  ;  ««  that  no  one 
can  begin  to  realize  what  a  stupendous    factor  a    glacier 
IS  until  he  sees  the  measure  of  its  infinite  power  thus  made 
supremely  manifest.     Visitors  are  told  that  glaciers  move 
at  the  rateof  so  many  feet  or  inches  daily.     Ocular  evidence 
maybe  obtained  by  fixed  landmarks,  which  indicate  a  sta?'d 
progression.     From  the  size  and  frequency  of  the  clea- 
here  it  would  seem  that  the  progress  of  the  Muir  m^       i 
several  rods  a  day,  though  an  estimate  can   only  b       T 
proximated,  as  there  is  no  true  alignment,  and  the  ecu  " 
moves  faster  than  the  sides.  u  me  ecu..  . 

Long  before  the  steamer  reaches  the  entrance  of  Glacier 
Hay  straggling  lumps  of  ice  appear,  dazzling  white,  and 
resting  like  blocks  of  marble  on  The  polished  sea,  which  i^ 
scarcely  moved  by  an  imperceptible  swell  pulsating  through 
the  Sound.      I  he  sun  is  warm  and  grateful,  and  the  sky 
without  a  cloud,  excepting  those  which  stretch  like  filmy 
gauze  from  peak  to  peak,  the  temperature  perhaps  60  de- 
gree.s  in  the  shade.     Half  of  the  passengers  have  never 
seen  an  ice-cake,  and  they  are  eager  with  excitement  to  get 
nearer  the  po  ar  videttes  which  are  drifting  by,  away  off 
under  the  lan.i       The  course  of  the  vessel  bears  gradually 
oward  the  h.      'and  at  the  entrance,   and  the  lumps  of  ice 
become  more   numerous.     Bevies  of  ladies  rush  to  the  taff- 
rail  as  one  of  them  passes  close  under  the  counter      Pres- 
f^n  ^  ?  ^^'""^  promontory  opens  out  a  large   iceberg  of 
fantastic  shape,  and  then  another,  tall  and  stately,  with 


THE  GLACIER  FIELDS.  ,71 

aS'.h^^  ^  ?'"^-  ^'^  ^""^'  h^g^en  and  shags  hover 
about  their  gleaming  walls  like  snow-flakes  in  the  air  or 
sit  in  solemn  ranks  upon  the  battlements.  Ob  ects  cha^^ 
positions  constantly,  and  countermarch  across  the  fiefd  ?f 
view.  Fancies  dissolve  before  thev  are  fnri,^H  pIa  • 
from  the  land  appear  in  darksVmeVhaVe^Tc^L^^^^^^ 

Thost  r  and  oXd'Vh^  S^""'°-  semblances; 

gnoscuKe  and  pallid.     The  scenic  effects,  at  once  so  ma o- 

jcd^and  duplicated  everywhere,  grow  momenJadly  Se* 

Meantime  the  steamer  slacks  her  headway,  slows  down 
and  presently   with  a  sullen  thud,   lies  alongside  a  sS 

thetid  J^'t^"'''  '^^"  P^^"  "P  °-^  ^he  deadeyeS 
the  head  of  the  companionway,  looking  for  all  the  world  as 

if  it  was  going  to  come  aboard.     All  the  curious  ladTesoiue 
a  combination  scream,  and  make  for  the  door  of  the  So 
tains  stateroom.     Then  the  nuarfi:>r  h.J^   jo  ^ne  cap- 

the  davits  and  lowered  away^"and  the  ste^^^^^^^ 
mate  and  the  sailors  tackleTh^  glistentg  Sttn^ Uh 

wiri^ght:rndi"oi;r''"""^'-^'°pp'"^- 

aTd\^S\^ta7d'Srstnr  "Th^'sJp'lv  iJ^f  '"T 

patenttis^^H   •^"^^' ^"'  -ll"  an^dtaS^'n/^n's' 
?„.  .       J    '     ""^  P''«':">"s  to  passeneers  who  have  hew. 

rkeiroSp"Thi'nh"''."'  '"=  i'-"<i  whose  miL:" 

jiKeiy  o  ppoil !    1  he  chunks  cut  off  seem  colorless  but  th,. 
central  core  of  the  berg  itself  glows  like  a  great  blue  eve 
tSe'd  "'t/fX-'^V '  """  """.^°"  of  helical  lilTt' 

traTslucenfdtp'^'^^  of  yhe^rad"  i cTwho  ^"'7  '"'°  '"* 
!.,*«„  tu    ui       F"'^  "'  <•"<:  glacier  ice,  whose  radiance  emu 

Im/r  M  '^  v^  ^"^  ^'"^"  ^^  ^^'y>'  turquoise,  chrys oprase Tnd 
emerald.  You  gaze  into  them  as  into  the  arcana  of  th2 
empyrean,  with  some  vague  awe  of  their  rmrster?ous  source 
and  the  mtangible  causes  which  gave  them  ^^th  And 
the  grand  icebergs  !-so  cold,  yet  so  majestic  so  solid  v.^ 
so  unsubstantial ;  so  massive  yet  so  ethireal -'--who  e  baf 
.ons  are  mighty  enough  to  shiver  an  onset,  and  yet  so  v^.* 
tile  that  the  warmth  of  wooing  spring  will  disshLf^  rh^m 

u"ppe^S;'r^  S^frif^  .4*  f^r'conSTiJ't™ 
thrboweis  of    „1,.I,  ^  effulgent  sun,    and  tnolde-J  in 

no  c^or  :;:,err.'  '-z^^z^^z^  - 

thc.r  duplex  e„t,ty  ,s  so  l.ke  our  cLbination'^f  sou7'a„d 
.Wyt"br:^'l";s%relSVAt=L^.".^:-l«'"s  the 


I72 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


'  I 


bleTvnli*'^''.^^  intensest green  ?    Behind  an  intelligi- 

klnw  ^if ""  '"'''^'  revelation  which  all  men  wish  to 
know.     Let  us  wait. 

o  tf'^^'^^u^  "^""^  blowing- as  we  entered  Glacier  Bay 
and  the  breath  came  bitterly  cold  from  off  the  icefield! 
Ihebay  was  filled  with  floating  bergs  and  floes,  and  the 
emperature  dropped  quite  rapidly  to  46  degrees.  The 
ruffled  surface  of  the  water  assumed  that  pecul^r  tinge  of 
cold  steel-gray  which  landscapes  wear  in  winter  The  at- 
mosphere put  on  a  sympathetic  hue  and  grew  perceptibly 

spread  out  before  us  like  a  great  white  apron  on  the  lap  of 

hP  hZTT'^u    u     '^  'r'^^    ™^'^^   ^^°"^    th^  entrance  to 
t2^A     ^^^^^^'^"^"^  °^^'  th^  ^"t'^-e  landscape  nature 
seemed  dead.     Not  a  living  thing  appeared-not  a  gull  on 
the    wing    nor  a  seal  in  the    gloomy  fiords.     Desolation 
reigned  throughout,  for  there  was  nothing  to  sustain  life 
The  creation  was  all  new,  and  the  glacier  was  still  at  work 
gradual  y  preparing  it  for  the  abode  of  organic  life      Dark- 
ness  only  was  needed  to  relegate  us  to  the  primordium  of 
inHntn  ?h  ^  K  ^  '""  was  bright  on  the  distant  peaks,  which 
mclosed  the  bay  on  all  sides,  and  their  intangi^ble,  ghostly 
outlines     scarcely  distinguished    from    the    fleecy  clouds 
of  en  th    '^'  M  ""'^  indefinitely  beyond   the  convex  line 
rnnfr.  ;   ,  ^^^^om  are  mundane  gloom  and  supernal  glory 
contrasted  by  such  startling  juxtaposition 

r.«nLJ^^  ?K  T^'  ,"^^^^''  ^^^  ^'^^'^'■'  speculations  began 
respect  ng  the  height  of  its  perpendicular  front,  but  no  5ne 
guessed  higher  than  the  vessel's  topmast.  It  was  on"y 
Tn^wtt^  ^^  anchored  in  ninety  fathoms  of  water,  close 
under  the  ice,  and  not  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  shore,  that 
specta  ors  began  to  conceive  the  magnitude  of  the  glacier 

Witt  1  i  ''"■  ■?:^'-«""d'"g«-     l^he  glacier  wall  overhu^'ng  u.s 
with   Its  mighty   majesty,   three  times  the   height  of  the 
steamer  s  mast,  or  more,  and  we  seemed  none  too  far  away 
LTT  /  '  ^°"«;a"tjy    cleaving  masses  which  dropped 
2?.u      .1,  '"^^  r'^    deafening    detonations.     The     oam 
which  ga  hered  from  the  impetus  of  the  plunges  surged  up^ 
ward    fully  two-thirds  of  the  height  of^he^liff,  Ld  the 
resul  ing  swell  to.ssed  the  large  steamer  like  a'toy    a.i5 
rolled  up  ,n  breakers  of  surf  upon  the  beach.     The  vessel 
wa-,  in  actual  danger  from  the  fragments  of  ice  which  occa- 
sionally thumped  against  her  sides**  Indeed,  her  whee  s  we  e 
afterward  badly  mashed  in  making  her  way  out  of  U  e  bay 
mfo  open  water      A  paddle-wheel  steamer  is  unfit  for  such 
navigation,  and  I  suppose  a  propeller  will  be  used  hereafter 


THE  GLA  CIER  FIELDS.  j  ^ 

anl^lvtt;  eTeVpa'rl  "by  "S: ^^T^  '^^  '^\  ^ ^ 
lowed  into  caverns  and  groUoes  hun^  wffh  "'"'•  •  ^'  ''  ^°^- 
t.tes,  and  fashioned  into^pinnacL  an^  dolT'T'  ''^'^"■ 
tion  and  configuration  has  its  hearf nf  .  t  ^^""^'^  '^^- 
green,  interlaced  or  borde  ed  bv  fl  T'.'"''"' ^^"^  «'■ 
intensest  white-   so  th^f  thl       ^     ^^^^"^   frost-work    of 

gnome-like  and  supernatural      Z'^?''    H  ^'  ^"   ^^^^ 
seems  to  pitch  forward  riliv  P°"'°"  ^'^  ^he  wall  ever 

to  bottom^  but  sec^^fons  nht  off  V"  "  '^u'''  ^^"  ^'^^  '^p 
dropfrom  midway  or  the  ?onTh''°"'  '^'  buttresses,  or 
their  descent  is  sublimity  itse^lf  h.  ^PP"'""'  ^'^"'"^^^  °f 
the  measure  of  itrstXndo^-  ^  ^^^"'^  ''  ""^'''"^  ^'^^  it 
height.  stupendous  vastness  and   inappreciable 

Impressions  of  mae-nitudp  pnH  ^^-    ^ 
conveyed  so  much  b/ any  relahve^^  7'""'  ^'^  "°^ 

as  by  the  degree  with  which  w.^  standard  of  comparison 
their  power  or  influence      On^        ""^  ^'^^'^  ^^e  range  of 
appreciate,  and    e  can  not  ^-i '  ""?'  •  ''       '  ^'^""'^  ^^  ^^" 
a  Certain  exten  ta  parUc  uator  P    ^  ""'''  '''  ^'"''^''  '^ 
trembles  at  what  remo  enes^*°nH  ?'^^'"^'^>'  shudders  and 
passionate  equanimUy      i   '  n  nn^^""''-^  T^  ^'^^  dis- 
cern sit  close  by  an^c^mtemnhf.       T''^''^  '^^^  ^"^  °"e 
pendous  throes  whth  giv^K     h  to'  he'^  T°'""  '^^  ^^"■ 
with  detonations  like  exDlos^nl  nf  ^^,^  '^^^ergs,  attended 
ations  of  thunder  acro^^th!^^    °^  ^^'''^'-y.  and  reverber- 

Which  follows  '^cu^::.z^''^:^^j:^'iy^^^^^^ 

a  lady  lol    w  th  comnini<5;,nnp    ^^cvertneiess,  I  have  seen 

fortabV  wrapped  f3  the  chlij^^if™"  ''i''-^  ™™- 
astound  nff  scene  with  th^l  ^        '    ^"*^   observe   the 

she  would^  c^  usT  her  LelTfi'T^"'^  contemplation  that 
Zounds!    I  believe  fhat  ^mpH     T'^"  ^"^  appointments, 
calmlv  view  thrwreck  of  worll  ""'1\  "'^^''""    ^'«"ld 
doom  at  the  final  renderinr'n";'^  ^''L '^'  ^^^^^  of 
She  could  watch  at  a   sSi     i     '^""^^^^^'^''he^set.'- 
Christian  martyrs-  the  carntl'f'''''""'!  '^"    ^^«"i«s    of 
of  cyclones;  Z^Ztrsl^l^^ZI  '  d'"  =  ^'^  '^'^^ 
not  appall  her-but  to  me  i/ wnnM  k     .^  ^"^'"'tc  would 
faction,   ineffably  supreme    to   st  rH  '  '^'^  '^'"'^  ''^ '^''''• 
aniti(m  by  a   cry   oi'<Zl\J''       J''\  '""^'^  '  ''^^^   «f    in- 
momentary  emoLn      No  vi^Li  '".^  '''''''■'^>'  ^'^^^"^  *"fo  ^ 
the  shock  vinaigrette  would  ever  mitigate 

seems  like  an  atom      aJ''4  ;-     "^^- "^"'^^"^''•^'  '"  «'^e. 
■     ""  ^"'^  "'^  '^^^^^  ^ne  fragments  ot  ice 


.  ■(■ 


I 


/74 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


Which  are  seen  stranded  along  the  beach,  looking  no  larger 
than  blocks,  measure  twelve  feet  high.     Those  lumps  drift- 
mg  past  yonder  fiord  are  icebergs  higher  than  our  topmast. 
The  other  side  of  the  bay  which,  we  imagine,  one  could  swim 
across  with  ease,  is  five  miles  off.     The  ice   ledge  itself  is 
four  hundred  feet  high.     The  peaks    in  the  distance,  forty 
miles  away,  are  sixteen  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
T-  w    u'^  ''  ''l^.  ^^"^'^'^  ''^^^v.mh,  looking  no   higher  than 
the  Washington  Monument,  a  sheer  monolith  six   thousand 
eet  high,  with    faces   almost  perpendicular.     The   timber 
ine  around  the  feet  of  the  distant  ranges  resembles  a  cine- 
ture  of  moss. 

From  a   pinnacle  of  elevation  overlooking  the  Muir  ice 
held,  which  IS   obtained  by  an   arduous   half   day's  climb 
although  some  expected  to  accomplish  it  in  an  hour,  one  can 
count  no  less  than  fifteen  tributary  glacial  streams,  any  one 
of  which  IS  as  large  as  the  great  Rhone  glacier 

Drawn  from  the  inexhaustible  but  annually   diminishing 
accumulations  of  snow  which  fill  the  mountain  valleys  to  a 
d'-pth  of  at  least  2,000  feet,  these  separate  streams  of  plastic 
congelation   unite  like  the  strands  of  a  rope   to  form  the 
irresistible  current  of  the  Muir.     The  surface  of  the  glacier 
is  not  uniformly  level  and  smooth  like  a  boulevard      It  has 
Its  drifts  and  dykes,  its  cascades,  riffs,  and  rapids,"  like  any 
unfrozen  river      In  the  immediate  front,  and  extending  a 
mile  or  more  back,  its  whole  surface  is  the  most  rugged 
formation    imaginable.      It  is   utterly  impossible   for  any 
living  creature  to  traverse   it,  being  in  fact   a   compacted 
aggregation  of  wedge-shaped  and  rounded  cones  of  solid  ice 
capped  by  discolored  and  disintegrating  snow.     But  away 
back  in  the  mountain  passes  it  is  easily  traversed  with  sledees 
or  snow  shoes.     Indians  cross  the  divide  at  sundry  places 
all  along  the  coast  from  the  Stickeen  to  Copper  River 

Looking  afar  off  into  the  blank  perspective  the  icy  re-en- 
forcements  which  pour  out  of  the  mountain  fastnesses  like 
gathering  cans    seem   compacted  into  indefinable    fleecy 
masses,  while  in  the  immediate  van  they  pass  in  review  in 
serried  phalanxes  of  cowied  and  hooded  monks  twenty  feet 
tall  wrapped  in  dirty  toques  and  capuchins,  snow  powdered 
and  bedraggled,  and  pressing  forward  with  never-ceasing 
march,  as  if  all  the  life-long  denizens  of  the  Gothard  and 
bt.  Bernard  had  set  out  at  once  to  temper  their  frigid  tongues 
in  the  tepid  waters  which  are  warmed  by  the  Kuro-Siwo 
In  other  places,  where  the  mer-de^glace  is  level  like  a  plain' 
Its  surface  »s  seamed  with  deep  crevasses  and  slashed  with 
rifts  and  chasms  whose  sides  and  walls  deep  down  for  sixty 


THE  J  LACIER  FIELDS.  „e 

f«--o  that  they  wU.  ^.rTe'J;' Zl'l^^lSX 
neafh'b"^™:  upVhfiSTj  T^  ^"'V'  flowing  under- 

the  straSdeddarisof^r  .'"',"'''•  ^  ''^>'  ^^^  ?"«'<=d  by 
in  the  written  narrative,  of  V^'  "°"'"?'  ^"^  ^^<=°«i<=d 
inability  to  enter  thrSv  in  ?^T'  ."  •"  'P"'''  <"  W' 
for  twefve  miles  na^'d'b^ce'h'e  Tce'fieid'  """'""jS^'We 

theMuirglacierete't T.onHf  ."°^^'"^  ^'"  remain  of 

tary  rills  leanLw.fh  .    ^       '^  '''i'^"'  ^"^   ««"^e  tribu- 

mefting  amonrthe  ,  eaks  "^"f/^^'  -dence  from  the  verr^al 

which  now  refans  thetnh    1  f^P  and  cavernous  gully 

as  it  now  does  in  the  Mftt^Thn  "  I  termmal  moraine, 

since  the  world  began  *''''   P"*^^"'  ^S^"* 

de^s'  ar riS  ™^j  ifc/rH?"  w^^^e^r '.r^ 

Some  of  the  lateral  moraines  (a,  the  drv  !,„,!=  „r  , 


» ■■! 


* 

1 

i 

176 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


.'  1 


•14 


glacial  outlets  :ire  termed)  are  still   underlaid  by  an  ice 
stratum  200  feet  thick,  which  became  detached  from  the 
mam  body  of  the  glacier  many  decades  since.     It  will  take 
a  ha  f  century   to   mek  it.     Clambering  over  these  is  no 
child's  play.     Visitors  should  be  prepared  with  waterp  00? 
anglers    wading   trowsers   and  alpen-stocks  and   hob  nail 
shoes,  leaving  all  top  coats  and  superfluous  wraps  where 
they  can  be  resumed  after  the  jaunt  is  finished.     Rubber 
shoes  or  boots  are  liable  to  be  torn  to  shreds.     There  are 
spots,  looking  like  solid  earth,  which  often  prove  to  be  mud- 
holes   of   uncertain  depth.      Bowlders    are    everywhere- 
bowlders,  ice,  and  slimy  silt,  or  till,  and  nothing  else      Bot- 

STn?.7h''?f '  ^^'"^  ^°"  °^^  ^'  "^^'"y  '"^"-     To  land  dry- 
shod  from  the  boats  is  not  easv,  on  account  of  the  surf 

Altogether,  it  is  astonishing  what  a  minimum  of  distance 
or  altitude  one  can  accomplish  with  a  maximum  of  clamber- 
ing and  perspiration,  even  with  the  chill  wind  blowing  fresh  • 
for  evexy  object  sought  is  at  least  five  times  the  distance 
guessed  at,  and  the  road  is  hard,  indeed,  to  travel.  Never! 
theless,  the  adies  are  generally  foremost,  and  old  Swiss 
explorers  will  distance  all  the  rest. 

It  is  a  consolation  and  a  comfort,  when  on  the  apex  of 
the  moraine,  with  the  polar  desolation  all  around,  and  everv 
resource  of  succor  or  deliverance  clean  cutoff,  to  look  far 
down  upon  the  little   object  which  is  our  only  hope-the 
steamer  which  seems  an  atom  more  thar       er—and  know 
that  although  the  bay  be  filled  with  floes,  i...re  is  open  water 
and    safety    and  genial    climate    just    beyond,    and    that 
no   hopeless   Arctic   winters    intervene.     By  some    trivial 
accident,  possible  enough,  a  party  of  excursionists  might  be 
lef   in  a  situation  almost  as  hopeless  as  the  hapless  sufferers 
of  the  Lena.     The  perils  are  precisely   the  same,  modified 
only  by  the  relative  accessibility  of  succor,  and  therefore  too 
much  stress  can  not  be  laid  upon  the  stanchness  of  t^e  ves- 
sels sent  into  the  ice.  •  v,  vca 

Last  winter  the  citizens  of  St,  Paul  instituted  an  ice-palace 
and  illuminated  it  with  electric  lights,  and  all  the  heavenly 
panets  lent  their  aid  to  make  it  resplendent.  At  nieht 
when  the  full  moon  shone  upon  its  crystal  walls  and  battle- 
ments, and  their  translucence  was  reflected,  it  looked  more 
like  an  ethereal  creation  than  one  of  substance.  It  was 
stately  in  its  magnificence  and  overwhelming  in  its  super- 
natural majesty.  But  what  shall  compare  with  the  Muir 
glacier  when  the  moonlight  is  upon  it,  and  all  the  phosphor- 
escence of  the  Pacific  Ocean  beats  in  billows  of  liquid  flame 
against  its  toppling,  crumbling  walls  ?  When  lunar  rainbows 


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^HE  GLACIER  FIELDS.  i-- 

explosions  which  seem  to  ^nlif  IL  i  ■^'  """^  <="■"*'''  of 
to  mountain  source  when  nnfWn^  glacier  Uself  from  front 

"pon  the  ghostly  iSeTctge  fefts'L'f  4\t""'''  '"^^ 
imagine  on  y  the  revels  of  rha^t  ^"i  u  shades,  one  can 
to  the  genesi^  ofcreation  ^"^  '^'  '"^"  "^^^^^  back 


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WIUTIR.N.Y    MSM 

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RUSSIA  IN  AMERICA. 


Ever  since  the  previous  sailing  day,  when  the  la^^  hnv  «f 
freight  was  leisurely  trundled  into^thrwarehouse  ^^has 

to  do.  The  government  vessels  are  off  on  duty  the  miner? 
away  at  the  diggings  ;  the  fishing  season  over  ;  half  tlTe  JeT 
ements  vacant ;  no  entries  nor  clearance  at  th^custom  house  : 
the  governor  is  sticking  type  in  his  printing  office  and  tS; 
attorneys  are  matching  kopecks  to  see  who  shall  Tn  h^ 
next  case.  Down  at  the  Indian  '<  ranch  "  the  dogs  are  dozn^ 
InH  /"\'."'^^''°"^"y^Siwash  will  stroll  tf  the  beach 
and  straighten  out  the  mats  which  cover  his  canoe  a  few  of 
the  mission  boys  at  the  far  enH   of  iU^      n  '        ^  °^ 

Meanwhile  the  melting  snow  from  the  mountain,  trickle. 

tt^erVn'e^  '""''''''^'^  insidiously  in^'o^h^eTilesrC 
The  last  time  the  steamer  made  fast  to  the  dock  her  stem 
line  pulled  off  a  section  of  the  worm-eaten   pi&  and  the' 

'gatt'tt'^sfdroT'thV'  '•T'^^^  -^^^  ha'dbf^n'doJng 
against  the  side   of  the   warehouse  ever  since   the    trip 

fei^nJ  "  T?""!""  "^^y  'i  ^"  ^^^"^•"     Then  every  thing  is  dif. 

pens  behim  l.nh  ^  ^\'u""''  ^"^  '^'^  attorneys  have  two 
pens  behind  each  ear  ;  the  war  vessel  comes  into  nort  ■  the 
governor  shaves  and  cleans  up  to  receive  his  guests^  ta^drJ 
klootchmen  open  up  their  ba.sket-work,  beifies  Lnd  cuHoJ 


RUSSIA  IN  AMERICA.  ,.« 

at  eligible  stands  ;  and  the  distracted  post-master  is"iu«t 
too  busy  for  any  tiling  ;  "  even  the  cows  on  Tfce  parlde  ^ai 
too  curious  to  graze  for  looking  at  the  stir  ^  *'* 

As  soon  as  the  brass  gun  of  the  exnprf«>rl  ««c.,z.i  u 
among  the  islands  of  the  bay,  ?he  wharf^ifcrowr^^^  ^°k  "' 
are  just  300  white  people  in  town  and  thTl  ^u^'^' 

make  a  crowd.     If  the  wharf  shon  IH^-  '^  ^"°"«^^  '° 

gulf  the  whole  popirati^S-SwLt^^^^^^  ^"- 

pianuS  »°H  P''T"«"''  «"  ^^'■°'=  before  the  gal. 

£^i^^;tjKL^et.?ir.ren:iiri^:r'tH 
p|ten,  L  ;c:i5L{:rTHeTor„^o%T'-ru^r^r,"dS 

somr,7h',"fP''"^''''"  ■"  '""  »P  i"  their  blaSin' 

School  there  is  a  purrc-choS^I  for  *iS"  ^^'i'^"  'he  Indian  Mission 
are  fiveattorneysS  a  newTdeoot  'fLh.  ^  ^"'.'y-""*^  P"?'''"  There 
In  th^  local  pa4r  for  thrmonth^?f  M„„'^'''^-  "'"  '-"''""  ^^'^  advertised 
the  Ore.  k.  CSitholi- ind  pT^^t.^I  ^^-  .'^'^  'K'"""  ""vices  are  held  by 
.  ^amon.  and  F.oteitant  denominations.    Sitka  is  waking  up 


1 80 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


It  occurs  to  the  author  that  a  fine  opportunity  is  offered 
for  a  worthy  disciple  of  yEsculapius  to  estabhsh  himself  in  a 
good  business  at  Sitka,  as  the  native  Alaskans  need  the 
services  of  a  physician  to  an  alarming  extent. 

During  the  twenty-four  hours  which  the  steamer  is  re- 
quired by  contract  to  remain  in  port,  although  she  frequent- 
y  stays  two  day-  all  the  elite  of  the  town— the  "  leading 
ladies,    the  Creoles,  the  pure  blood  Russians,  and  the  better 
Klootchmen,  crowd  aboard  to  see  their  metropolitan  sisters 
and  inspect  the  latest  fashions  ;  the  merchants  and  officials 
obtain  their  mail  matter  and  invoices  ;  the  naval  officers  "  see 
the  boys  "  and  receive  their  magazines  and  newspapers  • 
If  there  is  any  fresh  beef  or  fruit  to  spare,  it  is  immediately 
bespoken.     Meanwhile  the  busy  Siwashes  on  the  dock  are 
unremittingly  trundling  freight,  and  small  knots  of  privi- 
leged rustics  wander  all  over  the  ship  and  inspect  her  fittings 
and  machinery.     Sometimes  there  is  opportunity  to  make 
side  excursions  to  points  of  interest,  in  respect  to  which  the 
blue  jackets  are  of  essential  service,  as  they  have  a  steam 
launch  and  light  boats  and  are  always  hospitable.      Festiv' . 
ties,   too,   are   in   order,  and   invitations  are  issued   for   -j. 
grand  ball  *'  at  the  castle,  sans  ceremonie,  toilets  at  discre- 
tion.    The  invitations  are  general,  for  the  shore  community 
IS  not  large  enough  to  cut  up  into  castes.     If  it  were  crit- 
ically culled  there  wouldn't  be  waltzers  en  ugh  to  go  round 
for  the   American   population,  all  told,  is  but  sixty.     So 
the  floor  is  sifted  over  with  spermaceti  shavings,  and  an  old 
brass  relic  of  a  Russian  chandelier  is  filled  with  candles  and 
hung  up,  while  a  couple  of  marines  or  waiters  from  the  mail 
steamer  do  excellent  duty  as  musicians  with  banjo  and  ac- 
cordeon.     Slips  and  mishaps  never  mar  such  an  occasion- 
never  ;  they  embellish  it.     "  Select  your  Klootchmen !  "  and 
•  swing  your  Siwasii!  "  fill  up  the  measure  of  shuffling  feet 
and  the  ball  succeeds  until  the  antiquated  dust  of  all  the 
Romanoffs  is  stirred.     'Twas  ever  thus  in  the  ancient  days, 
1  m  told  ;  for  even  then,  no  crucial  distinctions  could  be 
made  if  the  necessary  components  of  a  ball  would  be  forth- 
coming.    But  alas!  not  a  vestige  of  the  old  glory  remains 
to  illuminate  the  dark  bare  walls.  Desolation  reigns  through- 
out  the  empty  halls,   and    the  wind  whistles  mournfully 
through  dozens  of  broken  panes.     Not  a  tenant  holds  the 
venerable  places  in  the  castle  except  the  U.  S.  signal  man 
aloft  who  keeps  his  lonely  vigils  in  the  cupola  on  the   roof. 
Up     there,    in   the   government   sky   parlor,  the    faithful 
chronicler  of  the  storms  clings  to  his  weather-beaten  post 
JNothing  moves  him.     Politics  may  change,  civil   service 


RUSSIA  IX  AMERICA. 


i8i 


reform  may  fail,  silver  coinage  be  repealed,  or  the  rookerv 
Kself  collapse  and  fall!  Whatever  may  betide,  blow  hot  blow 
on  fhjto  of^.r^  'h'  ^'"^  "^'^  '''■''■  ^he  four^Utle  cupl 

In  ^itka  and  northward,  revelers,  owls,  and  such  find 
sma  1  mdulgence  for  orgies  claimed  for  ho^rs  of  darkness 
for  the  sun  .s  bnght  at  3  o'clock  A.M.,  and  he  Us  home' 
early  who  goes  -  when  daylight  doth  appear."  In f he  loS 

arTseen'  VnVT'l' 'i''''^'''  ^^  ^''^  ^^at  all  the  sfa 
twilight      ^n!l     u  ,^"§^'1^^^'  Of  the   planets  outvie  the 

the  c?ndlpf  hi     ^^'^^'.^  '^  "  ^""  ^'^^'  ho"^s  do  come  " 
.he  candles  have  burned  down  in  their  sockets,  and  the 

S'o'mance  :n'?h'^'  ''^'''  '°  ''''  P^^^^^  ^-  -"n^ian 
fnthl  u      ^      }^^  ^"^^^  '  o''  sometimes  there  is  a  wedding 

for  review  X  "^"'^  '"  ^  ^'^"^  '^'  ^'^  '^^P^^Y  turns Tu? 
tor  rev  ew,  4b  men  strong,  with  hose-cart,  fire  engine  and 
tm  buckets  improvised  from  oil  cans  ^      ' 

than  Sit^ka'I'^?h?  T'"  ^"^^anting  site  in  the  world 
inan   bitka  s.     It  has  been  compared   with    Naoles  •    hnf 

S'-'frtt  '""h'^  ™,"''  '^  ""'  ^°  massiv^lfclr  near  so 
grand.     In  the  varied  combmation  of  its  picturesoue  envi 

ronment  S.tka  is  both  placid  and  stupendous'ben  ^nant and 
majestic,  alluring  and  severe.  It  entices  wh  le  it  warns  It 
gathers  Its  beautiful  brood  of  verdant  islets  intoirarms 
and  folds  them  tenderly  to  its  bosom,  while  momentari^n 
frowns  m  awful  majesty  from  the  beetling  heights  above 
nfi;"V'?^u"''"^^"'°^  snow^clad  mountains^    Volcanic 

t^ovia'  Hf'J.Vh'  T^'-^'  '''!:''  ^"^-Edgecumbe  and  Vo  - 
toyia-hfted  high  against  the  firmament  of  blue,  and  welted 
with  great  red  ridges  of  hardened  lava  which  radiate  fom 
L^in:  P";^^^'%^«P«-ihe  contrast  of  colors  showing  aloft 
with  striking  effect.  Edgecumbe,  the  nearest  peakf  some 
fifteen  miles  away  but  seeming  close  at  hand,  is'neady 
3,000  feet  above  the  sea  level,  but  looks  as  if  it  were  part 
of  a  s.ooo-feet  peak  which  had  been  sliced  off.     l^his  tr^un 

be  .on??'  ;'•*  :i"'*^'"'  '"l^  ^y  '^^'^  ^ho  have  visited  it  to 
be  2  000  feet  in  diameter  by  200  feet  deep. 

«, }  ^''!L"  ""■  ^'^''^' '"  '^^  picturesque  herself,  though  dingy 
occupies  the  incurve  of  the  crescent-shaped  level,  cudS 
hke  a  trustful  child  between  the  knees  of  the  great  gian?s^ 
with  her  attendant  satellites  ranged  in  vieS  amomt  the 
glancing  waves,  some  cultivated  as  gardens  01  S  as 
pas  ures,  and  others  natural  gems  of%ock  wuh  verdure 
clad.  And  all  her  lap  is  filled  with  wealth  of  evergreens 
back  to  the  very  bases  of  the  mountains  ;  spa^Lling^freS 


m 

fH      f 


H' 


182 


OUR  NEH^  ALAS/CA. 


course  through  them  ;  and  giant  firs  whose  feet  rest  in  the 
shadows  of  the  valleys,   lift  their  tremendous  spires  high 
into  the  sunlight  of  the  upper  air.     The  atmosphere  is  soft 
hke  Italy's,  suffused  with  pink  and  yellow  laid  on  blue,  and 
whenever  the  tall  truncated  cones  catch  the  hues  of  sunset 
the  lava  of  their  ice-crowned  tops  glows  red  hot '     Right 
m   the  harbor  of  Sitka   is   Japonskoi  (Japanese)    Island 
where   government  pastures  cattle.      Eighty    years  ago  a 
Japanese  junk,  drifting  on  the  Kuro-Siwo  from  its  native 
moorings,  crossed  the  sea  and  rested  there— a  waif  from 
Asia,   to   suggest   to  intellects  obtuse  the  explanation  of 
ethnical  possibilities  not  at  all  mysterious  or  unaccountable 
It  is  stated  that  the  sympathetic  Russians  kindly  cared  for 
the  castaway  survivors  of  that  dreadful  drift  and  returned 
them  to  their  country,  as  witnesses  of  a  long-vexed  problem 
solved.     Som.e  ten  miles  from  town  is  Silver  Bay  with  a 
trout  stream  and  a  superb  waterfall,  which  is  often  visited 
by  excursionists  who  go  in  boats  towed  by  a  steam  launch 
which  tail  out  behind  in  a  most  exhilarating  way     Inde^ 
a  steam  launch  of  light  draft,  is  indispensable  to  pleasure  or 
business  in  those  parts.     Six  miles  north  is  Old  Harbor 
where  the  Russian  Baronoff  built  the  first  fort  in  1700  call' 
ing  It  Archangel.    Three  years  later  its  garrison  was  massa- 
cred  by  Sitka  Indians,  and  the  present  site  of  Sitka  was 
occupied  instead,  and  named  New  Archangel.     The  Hot 
Springs  are  ten  or  eleven  miles  south  of  town,  on  the  main 
land,  in  a  little  bay  which  is  protected  by  a  break-water  of 
pretty  islands.     There  are  three  mineral  springs— two  of 
warm  magnesia,  and  one  of  hot  sulphur,  the  density  of 
which  is  indicated  by  heavy  incrustations  in  their  basins 
1  he  temperature  ranges  from  one  hundred  and  twenty  to 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  degrees.     Almost  every  visitor 
claims  to  have  boiled  an  egg  in  them,  but  1  have  yet  to 
learn  where  each  contrives  to  get  his  tgg.     It  might  be  well 
tor  future  tourists  who  like  positive  tests  to  provide  them- 
seivesMvith  eggs  in  Boston,   New  York,  San  Francisco  or 
New  Orleans,  so  as  not  to  be  disappointed  when  they  finally 
reach   the  place.     A  few  rods  off  is  a  clear  spring  of  cold 
water,  in  which  there  may  be  trout  convenient  for  the  other 
popular  test.     For  myself,  when    I    visit  the  Yellowstone 
lark  or  other  noted  place,  I  always  catch  my   fish  ready 
boiled.     In  i860  the  Russians  built  a  hospital  and  bath,  and 
the  treatment  was  said  to  have   had    wonderful   remedial 
powers  in  skin  and  rheumatic  diseases.     The  buildings  are 
now  badly  dilapidated  and  ought  to  be  restored  at  once.    If 
done,  Sitka  would  have  become  more  than  ever  a  popular 


III 
If" 


RUSSIA  IJSr  AMERICA. 


«83 


flow  ["?  f  rjffidal  treXv ta?v'^  T^'  ^^  ^'^  ^"''^^  ^^^^^ 
trips  should  be  artgeTroVetHngs^rsr^^^^^ 

SiflcV  isT;  oTd  i?'"'  "P°h"  ^t''"-  Some tu'r^'f^m 
ni  c  t  u  •  Russian  redoubt,  where  there  was  also  a 
prison,  which  is  well  worth  a  visit/ not  only  as  a  rdtc  of  th^ 

a Iso'bdlt'  bv'the"  r'°^-''^  '^"^^^^^-     ^"^^^S  briSg^'s! 
outtt  of  f  h/il     ^Tu^'t  ^'°''  ^he  rapids  between  the 
outlet  of  the  lake  and  the  bay,  and  form  part  of  a  lone  and 
winding   promenade.     Indeed   one  may  say     ha     aH   th^ 
vicmty  of  S.tlca  is  suggestive  of  Russia^n  Tmerfca    wh  ch 
we,  before  its  purchase,  looked   upon  askance    as  h^nlr 
borean  and  savage  ;  but  now  are  su'rpdsed  to  discove^wa; 
so  far  advanced  that  the  humble  people  of  Cape  Cod  or 
other  shore  settlements  of  the  Atlantic,  would  have  b^en 
appalled  at  its  magnifies- .ce.     Every    hing  built   by  the 
Russians  was  of  a  substantial  character,  and  where  the  off 
cal  com  ort  was  concerned,  with  elegance.  " 

fromihe  ?u?s'oTth?if  f  ""'t  J-^^'^  ^""^^^^'-  themselves 
irom  tne  turs  of  the  land,  and  subs  sted  on  the  aDDrnnria 

tions  of  the  crown.     AH  they  earned  was  cLv  orofit    and 

Str^rfronf  st'"^\^  P"" '^  °^  ^^^  blood  came'  ov'r  the 
btrait  from  Siberia,  he  was  royally  entertained  •  moreover 
their  spiritual   welfare   was  zealously  cared   for    hvfh: 
church,  which  is  able  even  now,  s^maT  vea?s  af4  h^ 

.^1  ^meloLrr  lu^  A  '''■  ^"^^^  .''  ''^  SitkaTnctu'Va 
oiavic  melody  for  all  Americans  who  respect  the  Sahh/th 

nnl^TTl?'  i"^^^^'  *hat  the  little  capital  of  Alaska  was 
not  left  wholly  bereft  of  Christian  influences  else  would^t^ 
mongrel  population  have  gone  wholly  Jo  the  bad  for  so 
long  as  the  suggestive  spire  stood  in  their  mfdstn'oinfinS 

ctc""Tt'nrStr''^'  %  -"-d-  and  wickeZs  "f 
th^T  A-  present  there  is  a  form  of  Protestant  worshio  at 
the  Indian  mission,  and  ere  manv  months  ela,W  trust  a 
befitting   chapel    will  be  erected  to    meet    th;    reUgfous 


ill 


fHirt 


I 


1 84 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


M 


demands  of  a  growing  population.     The  public  have  lon^ 

^tf  ^n^^^H  ^""''''"''  T^  '^^  architecture  of  this  little  churdf 
Its  lofty  dome,  its  shapely  minaret,  its  gilt  and  gold  and 

anrsincriH?'''""'^^^'?;  ^^^^"^"^«'  ^"^  »^->y  P'^t-esl 
and  since  It  IS  now  so  ^^ell  preserved  in   photo^raoh  anH 

Srf  7h'  '^"k"^"'^^^^  nosincererCre^t  t'the 

o     its  'stuctt^l'"  '^^^P^^^f^''  't  the  trifling  sum  necessary 

tor  Its  structural  repair  and  preservation,  or  at  least  to 

t^Tsin'  '  '  ''r'  "'^".^  '^"^"  "-d  as'abaptLmaT  ub 
It  IS  a  sin  and  a  shame  to  let  it  drop  piecemeal  into  ruin 

Jnd'  S'/'"  ^T  ''T^'^"^  ^^^"  ^^«"^  «ff  the  me  a  dome" 
and  Its  wooden  sides  are  weather-worn  and  stained     the 

doors  are  sprung,  the  bolts  are  rusted  ;  the  interior  is' w^H 

7the'Sr''^'^'  JT  ^"^  "^"^^^  hands;  the  vofce  of  one 
of  the  bells  is  hushed,  and  in  winter  the  main  auditorium 
can  not  be  used  with  comfort ;  yet  I  see  that  the  gHding  o^ 

nt^l^ris^afh^  ^°"'""^^  '^^^^^'^"^  bythat^okerI 

.r  J^L^"?i!^"  population  of  Sitka  pure  and  mixed,  is  about 
250,  and  the  church  attendance  is  made  up  chieflv  of 
Indians  and  Creoles,  although  Father  Metropofsky  is  a  weH- 
nstructed  priest  pious  and  intelligent,  and  so  might  court 
of  otheTf "''  '^  '^'  ^,?"^'"  '^'"^^^^  '"  the  absence  of  teach" 
cLductedT^hfir'""^-'",^  inasmuch  as  the  services  are 
conducted  in  the  Slavonic  language,  which  is  both  imnrp<; 
sive  and  innocuous.     The  Indian  ?ommunUnts  are  alwavs 

crrsi.  /then^^^eT'^  ^T'^''^  °'^^^^'"^  ^"  the  periods  an'd 
thTforml  r'^'^P^P"'.''"^^'  ^'th  due  observance  of 
alkv  /n^ti '  ^""^  ^'  '^^  '""^'""^  ^""^  conducted  with  form- 
tl  1  P  °P^'  ceremony  no  essential  rites  can  be  ovS- 
has  wf^ten'^-'TlT''^  ^  "'"'^  intelligent  correspondent  who 
thv  Tv  !  K  J^^'^  u'  ""  ^^'y  "'"y  ^"^  unnecessary  antipa- 
Indin  te  Jn^^'T"  '\'  ^"'^^^^"-^ies  here  and  this  church, 
and  instead  of  workmg  harmoniously  together  in  their  efforts 
the  G^fekTh  ^he  Indians,  they  wo'rk  ft  cross  purposes, 
the  Greek  Church  or  any  other  can  succeed  in  miking  the 

wdl*"d'Jood  ' -r^'''^^  "P  ""^  ^^y  '"  ^he  week  at  feast! 

wen  ....d  good  ;  it  is  a  great  step  toward  godliness  and  it  il 

he  purest  nonsense  to  try  to  Christianize  fnybo?y  before  he 

acc'Is  on '    h."  '"'""  '^^"^l''     ^'''  «'-'  the^AmeTican  . 
accession,    the  missionaries  have  antagonized  the    Greek 

I  co.'ild'n''!'^  '^'^T''  f"^'^'^  «^ht  the  missionarfesTand 

auie  Iv  on  l^  7"^  ?"'  '^'  long-suffering  Siwash  migh  look 

aSage.        ^      "P '"''"'  '^''^P'  '"  '^'  '"^'^^  to  his  own 

It  has  taken  a  good  while  for  the  country  to  adapt  itself 


XUSSIA  IN  AMEStCA. 


»85 


left  the  place  a  useless ^u[n  ^^h^t  .h"''^^'""' """"^^  ^ave 
tooth   of  t  me    verv  wf.M   f^.  vyinier,  Dut  the  wearing 

theVha;eTown  ;^3V7/4^  -o"  painted  red,  o? 

tious  struclures  all  lar  Jr^r    •     ^"''^  ^^^^  ^^'"^  P^eten- 
wood  door   elaborateT/car?^^^^  ^'^^  hard 

ornament  in  the  shane  of  Jf.f;  "i    ,  '"""^  '^^^'^  P^'^  to 
partstobeeffStve^but  n?wTh;^^^^^^  '"^^  ^^^  in 

eaten  half  through  b^  rot  some  o?  th"".^""?  'i"^^^''^  ^'^ 
the  floors  has  befn  torn  nnTnr?    ^^  ^/'"^^  planking  of 

one-half  of  the  apartments^nd  wifh'tP"''  ^^  '"^^^'^^  «» 
marine  barracks  tSeTs Tot  one  ofSl  he  10^^';^-  °'  '-^^ 
dow-glass  unbroken  or  the  plastering  inlet  ""a  firf  "''"" 
c  eared  out  several  r>f  fv.^  ^       aiding  miact.     A  hre  once 

there  the  charred  drbrsstilZ'  '"  '^'  ^f  ^°'"-house,  and 
the  entire  great  building  are  fitTn  h  '  '  °"'^.  '\'^^  ""^^^^^  ^^ 
these  are  used  by  he  fud^e  Lh  L  °''"P''^.  ^"^  '^°  ^^ 
governor  has  to  -  ru.flp ''  for  I       ^"orney.     I  believe  the 

castle  which  crowns  a  rockv  e^?""''"?.  '^^^  ^^^"^  ^^^ 
town,  and  was  once  th^nrnff.  *^^^  overlooks  the 

Vmanoffs,TrnoT  hfwo';sfof1ir  U'Bad?"r^  ^"^ 
although  it  looks  imoosinTin  thi  .  .Badly-offs  ;   and 

ingbut  immediate^  win  av.  !l'f' '"  ^^'^'^h^'  "°'»^- 
time  and  weather      Onr.^  !  '*  ^'°"'  ^^^  assaults  of 

once  by  flTert^"  now^^he  ^^a^nd'lSe'jo'the^^t^' 

many  moons  have  oassed  il  wln?^  J  k     ^"^>e"0">  and  ere 
ary ''ghost  Of  tregX'Un^:^^^^^^ 


ilii, 


:?ni 


I 


1 86 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


!l  ' 


\i 


\A 


abouts,  to  ascend  to  light  her  periodical  beacon  on  the  roof, 
without  the  help  of  the  signal  officer  who  has  his  crow's- 
nest  there.     The  marines  who  guard  the  warehouse   and 
magazine,  keep  an  eye  to  the  tottering  walls  when  they  make 
their  turns,  and  pedestrians  who  pass  under  the  projecting 
roof  of  the  old  trading- house,  whence  bullets  were  liable 
to  rain  upon  the  intruders,  look  aloft  with    more   appre- 
hensions   of  dry  rot  than  hot  shot.      The   block-houses 
which  remain  can  scarcely  stand,  and  but  one  side  of  the  old 
stockade  guards  the  plaza,  shutting  off  the  Indian  "  ranch." 
So  it  is  throughout  the  town.     With  its  population  reduced 
two-thirds  and  its  business  nine-tenths,  with  half  the  shops 
and  dwellings  tenantless,  there  is  not  a  building  of  any  kind 
I  venture  to   say,  without   a  window  broken.      There  are 
not  more  than  two  or  three  which  indicate  fresh  paint  on 
their  fronts,  and  not  a  new  structure  of  any  kind  except  in 
the  purlieus  of  the  Indian  "  ranch,"  where  the  sight  of  a 
fresh  slab  is  richness  to  the  eyes.     On  every  side  the  grue- 
some ravens  croak,  truly  the  "  embodiment  of  spirits  long 
departed."     Noting  the  abundant  traces  of  a  previous  occu- 
pancy, with  the  dead  past  buried  all  around  them,  antiqua- 
rians already  begin  to  speculate  how  many  hundred  years 
ago  these  bastion  tov;ers  were  built,  so  dilapidated  and  gray 
they  look  ;  industriously  they  decipher  the  inscriptions  on 
the  ancient  coins  ;  and  simple  minded  Yankees,  when  they 
see  their  flag  floating  in  the  air,  wonder  if  this  is  really  their 
own  "  God's  country,"  or  w^ere  they  are.  Nevertheless  and 
withal,  the  town  has  still  a  habitable  and  homelike  look. 
There  are  gardens  filled  with  vegetables  and  flowers,  gera- 
niums in   v.':ndow   pots,  cows  quietly   grazing   along  the 
streets.     Occasionally  the  thrum  of  a  piano  is  heard,  which 
is  blessed  music  in  the  wilderness,  though  intolerable  in 
town.     Some  of  the  Russian  houses  preserve  their  national 
characteristics,  so  that  we  have  only  to  enter  them  to  learn 
how  the  people  live  in  Russia.     As  ladies  have  a  better  fac- 
ulty of  observation  and  tact  to  describe  domer.tic  econo- 
mies, I  will  save  myself  the  trouble  of  doing  so  by  copying 
from  my  lady  correspondent  •'  Mintwood,"  who  is  accurate 
and  vivacious.     She  says  : 

"  As  I  am  writing  in  one  of  them  at  this  moment,  I  will 
describe  it,  as  an  illustration  of  one  of  the  best  Sitkan 
houses  of  Russian  origin.  It  fronts  directly  on  the  bay 
with  a  charming  outlook,  and  between  the  house  and  the 
bay  is  a  large  garden,  in  which  a  Russian  neighbor  has  a 
fine  colony  of  cabbages  and  some  potato  tops.  The  path 
from  the  gate  leads  up  a  gentle  eminence  between  two  rows 


HUSSIA  IN  AMERICA. 


187 


has  a  vestibule,  openinfin  o  Si  IT  ''TP'?^  u^  '°^'' 


bly  native  made  \ 
pretty,  and  consi? 
a  mountain  goat  ( 
floor,  and  a  large 
tured  in  PhiladelpL 
everyday.     The  pa^. 


urniture,  of  yellow  cedar,  quite 

-^ts  and  drawers.     The  skin  of 

-'  cerable  space  on  the  bare 

wood,  that  was  manufac- 

fire  burning  in  it  nearly 

old  RuVsian  pVint  orthe  V  .         T"^  ^^T  ^ttractions-an 


T     I 


1 88 


OUR  NEW  ALASIOL 


vehicles   have  ever  run   over  it.     Quien  sabel  who  shall 
tell  ?    This  road  leads  past  the  Ind 


and 


Ii 


mission, 
dian  River,  just  beyond,  which  is  a  favorite  resort  for  visi- 
tors -xnd  towns-people  as  well.     Since  the  occupancy  of  the 
town  by  the  government  marines,  they  have  devoted  lots  of 
labor  to  building  bridges,  rustic  seats  and  walks  along  this 
spaikling  stream,  which  is  broken  into  falls  and  picturesque 
reaches  where  trout  disport ;  and  he  who  directed  the  work 
has  done  it  admirably  well,  for  every  natural  beauty  has 
been  left  untouched,  and  as  my  friend  already  quoted  de- 
clares, "it  is  just   like   walking  through   a   magnificently 
wooded  park  which  has  gone  wild  for  centuries,  with  only 
the  walks  left  civilized."     Some  of  the  firs  and  hemlocks 
are  simply  immense,  and  the   undergrowth  is  frightful  to 
penetrate.     In  the  midst  of  the  forest  I  found  a  small  ootato 
patch  which  had  been  fenced,  but  it  was  hard  in  Aug  -.t  to 
fi.  i  either  potatoes  or  fence.     Some  of  the  Indian  boy--  dis- 
like to  come  to  the  river  to  fish  for  fear  of  bears,  but  no 
bears  ever  yet  seemed  to  take  a  liking  to  any  of  them.  This 
river  furnishes  tl.e  only  good  drinking  water  to  be  had,  and 
the  good  people  of  the  town  walk  out  along  these  beautiful 
paths  with  tin   pails  and  demijohns  to  bring  in  drinking 
water.     The  barracks  details  fetch  it  in  a  canoe,  and  that 
this  inconvenience  exists  in  Sitka  is  but  one  illustration  of 
the  decay  and  amazing  enervation  of  the  town.      If  it  did 
not  rain  here  so  much,  and  barrels  and  casks  under 
were  not  kept  well  filled  most  of  the  time,  the  water 
tion  would  be  a  more  difficult  one  than  it  is. 

Hitherto  the  management  of  local  or  territorial  affairs 
has  not  been  happy.  None  of  the  appropriations  made  for 
the  support  of  the  civil  government  or  for  specific  purposes 
appear  to  have  been  accounted  for.  Until  two  years  ago 
the  government  itself  was  not  a  success.  Its  seat  was  never 
warm.  There  was  no  ownership  in  any  thing.  It  did  not 
even  know  what  belonged  to  it.  A  merchant  claimed  the 
public  warehouse  as  his  private  property  ;  another  citizen 
claimed  the  dock,  and  the  navy  had  actually  to  build  a 
vi^harf  for  its  own  necessities.  (N.  B.  When  there  is  any 
litigation-  in  Alaska  about  wharves,  the  teredo  steps  in  and 
eats  them  up  before  a  decision  can  be  reached.)  The  last 
administration  was  unfortunate.  The  governor  broke  his 
arm  and  had  a  paralytic  stroke,  and  the  district  attorney 
was  lied  in  California  by  falling  from  a  railroad  train. 
When  their  successors  took  office,  the  district  judge  was 
found  not  to  be  a  success,  and  attempts  were  made  to 
prevent  the  confirmation  of  the  new  governor.     Now,  how- 


eaves 
ques- 


HL/SS/A  IN  AMERICi. 


189 


ever,  an  auspicious  era  seems  to  have  dawn^,^  t  • 
ticn  IS  pouring  in  aoace  'rh«  nl  pawned.  Immigra- 
at  Sitka  is  a  wide-awake  ion ;,.!  ^I'^^^'^  '^^""^'^  ^'^^^^^d 
development  of  the^ount  v  nd'f '"^"''^  heartily  to  the 
obtain^nformationwh?4  cJnte  rT^'  '^^'  Public  can 
Swineford  means  "  st -ath?  k  •  ^"^u  "P°"-  Governor 
upon  his  sagadty  and  dl  ^Jetion      H^    ,  k^"^^    ^^P^"^« 

a  remedy  fo'r  defects  in  he  ^Irgov^rninV'terr?/'?  '^'"^^ 
ization.  There  heino-  n«  ^"^  ^"^^r"'"&  territorial  organ- 
different  towns  in  sending ',''''°"  ."^^  between  ^he 
another  for  trial,  he  "  as'fbre  ?o  go"/ S?n  f^.  '^'''  '^ 
otherwise,  taking  three  month^  fnr  ?u  ^  ■  ^"^^ncisco  ar 
less  expensive  not  to  take  th.n  f'  V'^""^'^'  '°  '^^^  '^ '« 
the  government  needs  fs  a  reven  e  cutter  ^Tr''''  '^^^' 
steam  lau  aches  to  serve  as  hIrW  r.^r  k  ""^  °"^  °^  ^"^^ 
sheriffs  in  these  strange  wate^^^^^^^^^  ^"^  deputy 

alone  would  make  all  the  Hi^;/^-'  .u^^'^  ""^^^^  effect 
insure  good  order  alst'abilUy^'^  '"  ''^^°^'^-     ^^^^^^^ 

EiS:::^s:s  ^Sh^^^^s  rr  ^-^^^r- ^^  and  Mt.  s. 

sonal   experience       Ro.Tnf  v  "^^ 'P^^M^o™  my  per- 

extended  to  Include  fhoseidr'''''/°"  '"^'  have  been 
limits  are  the  greatest  numV^nfr^i  ^^?'^  ^'^^in  whose 
to  be  found  in'^any'range^^i  t^  '"P°^''^^  ^'^^^ 

100  pages,  b,  -^utifullyp^rL  ed  and  ill  cfV  ^VJ^"^^^^^^  ^^ 
ern  Pacific  Railway  ComDanv^f  Hustrated  by  the  North- 
to  Alasi-a  I  find  tL  f.Tf  ^^'  ""  influence  summer  travel 
Lieuten^^'t  schwatka  .         "^"'^  '^^^'^^^^  ^^^"^  ^he  pen  of 

ern  l^rs'ol  t^rMounT^'P^pf"  ^/,  '°"^^^^'  ^^e  south- 
Crihon  and  Fairweather  h^  -  ^^^  ^'  '''  '"^^  ^i^^' 
easily  recognized  f'omn.,rJ^  prominent,  and   the  latte; 

wateL  of  c!lac  er  Bay  TtriolT'anT  "^'^^  ''  ^^°"^  ^^^ 
along  a  comparativelvunintpiL?  °"''  "^  '^°  ^^'^es  us 

the  '  square  off  our^^aJSl''^  """"^''l  ^'  ^'^^^^  from 
the  mind  is  fixed  TthTg^and  A^.Tn'^  '■  ^'^  ""''  ''"^^ 

of  us,  that  are  slow  v  dev^^l^^  "  ""T-^  ""^  ''^^^  ^^^ad 
and  there  as  we  spe^^towa^  t^he^  m  plainer  outline  here 
of  Icy  Point ;  whUe  iusJr/vnnH^'  ^  ^'"'^^abreast 

to  the  ocean  hrtgivis  about  thJ^  'T''  1°^"  ^  ^'^^^^^ 
of  ice,  while  its  o^urre  is  ?ost  in  the^^h''  u  '°''^  ^^^"^^^^ 
bases  of  the  snowy  neaks  W  h  ^^.'?^  heights  covering  the 

the  right,  as  we'S^th  glfc'ie?- front '''^M  ^^^S^^ 
Perouse.    named  for  r.r.^Vf  fu^  °"''  '^  Mount  La 

long  l.i..'o?  expfor  °r  ,  ^d  whi'^tts  We"*  f.  >"'- = 
of  geographica,  science,     ^t  eye"  tte?  i"„  '5,1^"^::;^': 


I  go 


OVK  NEW  ALASKA. 


1 

1 

1 

V. 

1 

J 

!| 

1 

i 

f 

i 

1 

i! ! 

1 

A 

ct: 

! 
1 

1 

! 

m  1 

'If, 


fill 

i 


w 


of  Alpine  peaks  in  '1786,  just  a  century  ago.     Its  sides  are 
furrowed  with  glaciers,  one  of  which  is  the  ice-wall  before 
our  eyes,  and  which  is  generally  known  as  the  La  Perouse 
Glacier.     The  highest  peak  of  all,  and  on  the  left  of  this 
noble  range,  is  Mount  Crillcn,  named  by  La  Perouse,  in 
1786,   after  the    French  Minister  of  the   Marine  ;    while 
between  Crillon  and  La  Perouse  is  Mount  D'Agelet,  the 
astronomer  of  that  celebrated  expedition.     Crillon  cleaves 
the  air  for  16,000  feet  above  the  sea,  on  which  we  rest,  and 
can  be  seen  for  over  a  hundred  miles  to  sea.     It,  too,  is 
surrounded  with  glaciers  in  all  directions  from  its  crown. 
Crillon  and  La  Perouse  are  about  seven  miles  apart,  nearly 
north  and  south  of  each  other.     About  fifteen  miles  north- 
west of  Crillon  is  Lituya  Peak,  1 0,000  feet  high ;  and  the 
little  bay-opening  that  we  pass,  between   the  two,  is  the 
entrance  to  Lituya  Bay,  a  sheet  of  water  which  La  Perouse 
has  pronounced  as  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  in  the 
world   for  grand   scenery,   with   its    glaciers  and   Alpine 
shores.     Our  steamer  will  not  enter,  however ;  for  the  pas- 
sage is  dangerous  evea  to  small  boats— one  island  bearing 
a  monument  to  the  officers  and  men  of  La  Perouse's  expe- 
dition, lost  in  the  tidal  wave  which  sweeps  through  the  con- 
tracted  passage   like  a  breaker  over  a  treacherous  bar. 
Some  ten  or  twelve  miles  northwest  from  Lituya  F  ^ak  is 
Mount  Fairweather,  which  bears  abreast  us  after  a  little 
over  an   hour's  run  from  Lituya  Bay.     It  was  named  by 
Cook  in  1778,  and  is  generally  considered  to  be  a  few  hun- 
dred feet  shorter  than  Mount  Crillon.     It  is  in  every  way, 
by  its  peculiar  isolation  from  near  ridges  almost  as  high  as 
itself,  a  much  grander  peak  than  Crillon,  whose  surround- 
ings are  not  s'-    good   for  a  fine  Alpine  display.     Fair- 
weather,  too,  has  its  frozen  river  flowing  down  its  sides  ; 
but  none  of  them  reach  the  sea,  for  a  low,  wooded  country, 
some  three  or  four  miles  in  width,  lies  like  a  glacis  at  the 
seaward  side  of  the  St.  Elias  Alps,  for  a  short  distance 
along  this   part  of  the  coast.     The   somber,  deep  green 
forests  add  an  impressive  feature  to  the  scene,  however, 
lymg  between  the  dancing  waves  below  and  *he  white  and 
blue  glacier  ice  above.     Rounding  Cape  Fairweather,  the 
coast  trends  northward  ;  and,  as  our  bowsprit  is  pointed  in 
the  same   direction,  directly  before   us  are  seen   immense 
glaciers   reaching   to  the   sea.      From   Cape  Fairweather 
(abreast  of  Mt.  Fairweather)  to  Yakutat  Bay  (abreast  of 
Mt.  Vancouver)  no  conspicuous  peak  rears  its  head  above 
the  grand  mountain  chain  which  for  nearly  a  hundred  miles 
lies  between  these  two  Alpine  bastions  ;  but,  nevertheless. 


B 


•■"'in 


HUSSIA  IN  AMERICA.  19, 

withnMTonalofstJtenriHT     "'  else  would  be  held  up 
.hey  are  o„,^  SSdCranderpS?^''"'^'"™-    «"' 


fii 


I 


THE  SEALS  OF  PRIBYLOV 


H. 


A  treatise  on  Alaska,  however  ephemeral  or  unpreten- 
tious, would  hardly   be   complete  without   some   reference 
being  made  to   its  fur-seal  fishery,  upon   which  almost  the 
only  revenue  of  the  territory  was  based  up  to  the  year  1884. 
Professor  Henry  W.  Elliott's  official  report  to  the   govern- 
ment, made  in  1882,  comprising  the  result  of  many  years  in- 
vestigation,  is  an  exhaustive  account  of  all  there  is  to  know 
about  the  subject ;  and  from  it  I  have  gathered  the  facts  ap- 
pended.    This  is  an  illustrated  volume  of  nearly  200  quarto 
pages,  comprising  a   history   of  the   fur-seal   fishery  from 
earliest  dates  ;  the  discovery  of  the  Pribylov  group  in  17Z6 
by  the  hardy  Muscovite  whose  name  they  bear  collectively  ; 
the  configuration  and  natural  history  of  the  Islands  ;  their 
acquisition  by  the  United  Stales  ;  the  formation  and  opera- 
tions of  the  Alaska  Commercial  Company  ;  and  a  descrip. 
tion  of  the  inhabitants,  their  occupation  and  mode  of  life. 
The  breeding-places  and  habits  of  the  seals  and  all  their 
phecine   kindred,  the  walrus,  sea-lion,  sea-otter,   hair-seal, 
etc.,  and  the  methods  employed  to  secure  their  hides,  and 
to   prepare  and  ship  them  to  market,  and  to  dye  them  to 
suit  the  wearers,  are  all  given  io  the  most  considerate  man- 
ner, with  due  regard  to  the  sensibilities  of  the  animals  them- 
selves, which,  next  to   the   ladies  who  hope   to  wear  their 
pelts,  are  unquestionably  the  parties  chiefly  interested.    The 
details  are  intensely  interesting  to  the  reader,  and  to  the 
seals  excruciating,  we  may  believe. 

Located  fourteen  hundred  miles  west-north-west  from 
Sitka,  as  the  ship  sails,  and  nearly  two  hundred  miles  from 
Oonalashka,  the  nearest  land,  sea-girt  and  beset  with  out- 
lying reefs,  continually  befogged  in  summer,  and  in  winter 
swept  by  cruel  icy  blasts,  the  Pribylovs  are  hard  to  find.  It 
is  said  that  navigators  have  even  touched  their  cliffs  with 
their  vessels'  yard-arms  before  they  were  aware  of  their 
close  proximity.  And  it  is  because  of  this  isolation,  as  well 
as  because  they  afford  the  only  good  resting  place  in  Alaska, 
that  the  seals  frequent  them.  They  are  all  of  volcanic 
origin,  bearing  some  not  remote  traces  of  dynamic  ar.tion 


'gii 


THE  SEALS  OF  PRIB  YLO  V.  1 53 

the  crater  of  Otter  island  being  "  as  distinctly  defined  and 
as  plainly  scorched  as  though  it  had  burned  oit  yesterdav  " 
St.  Paul  island  is  thirteen  miles  in  length  by  six  in  breadth 
composed  of  rough,  rocky  uplands,  fuggeV  hills  smooth' 
volcanic  cones,  parti-colored  sand-dunes  erassvnl.f^.  5 
wet  and  slippery  flats,  where  the  seals  most  ^ongTe^''  It  ;^^ 
mterspersed  with  pools  and  lagoons  of  good  fresh  water  in 
which  a  pretty  minute  viviparous  fi<h  is  found  St  rpn;^2 
•s  ten  miles  long  by  four  and  one-ha.fmi^^s  wide  ste^p  and 

TalThichThe"  "."'^  ^^^^P^  ^'  '^^^^  short  'retches  of 

Ssr  Paul   it  .knh  *'''""  appropriated  for  "  rookeries. '• 

itnH    •  •  i  ^•^^  ^^^  "^^"y  P-o's  of  water.     Its  highest 

hol';>fst^^P  ^ 'r'  ^"^  ^1-  P""''^  ^°°  f^^t.     Near  y  haifthe 

fowl  breed  and  hover  perpLSi;o^er\"eir tdg^at In" 

^^S"^.-^'::^^^''^^..^''   the'available  spacerartll  ed 
witn  eggs  in  spring.     1  here  would  be  valuable  trnano  h^ 
posits  .xcept  that  they  are  annually  washed  clean^offbv  th; 

SfsSlfaren/  "  F^^H  'T"f  f '^^  Period^e  td^     e' 
uiscreetiy  absent.     Each  island  has    ts  villace  of  resident 

overseers   and   employes,  its  killing-grounds^  sa  tine  and 
packing  houses,  and  its  little  harbor  where  vessels  ma?  lo.d 

a^  good  deal   of  grass-a  dozen  varieties  of  diftW^n? 
lengths  and  quality,  and  a  multitude  of  petty  flowers  ?ern 
•and  mosses.     Snow  melts  at  a  very  low  temperTture    and 
grass  begins  to  grow  at  34  <legrees  or  36  deXfeve;  ,7";'^ 
be  covered  by  melting  drifts  of  snow  andThe   frost  lac 

K'ltif  "^  '^'  ^'"""^  ^''^  "^^'"y  ^^^'  beneath.     Some  success 
has  followed  attempts  at  gardening,  and  lettuce  rndishe. 

avorfd  spo  s  '^TounT"    ^'^^''^  '^^^    been"  grown'Tri 
idvorea  spots.     Countless   sparrows   come  in   eaHv  snrino- 

and  are  gathered  up  for  food  by  the  thousands  Tut  TZ 
Israelites  gathered  quails.  These  birds  agreeably  va^v  the 
staple  diet  of  seal  meat,  of  which  the  1  ^7.  ^  vary  the 
about  400  souls  all  told,  consum"  some'      00'  pcruX'dav' 

thdr  Si^teTe'  ''i'"^  '^^"  '''  ^"^^^  ^'^^  se'als  a'y^^'fo'; 
ineir  subsistence.     Kxceptingtwo  or  three  mules  for  work 

the  only  animals  on  the  islands  are  hosts  of  blue  foxes  lem 

minjrs,  which  Imupvcoirhth—    '* u      ■  '     .     '"*'-N '^.m- 

„  jif.mD  tnc  =o-.tcr  carih  wiin  iheir  burrows, 


•If 


194 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


mice,  and  stump-tail  cats,  which  run  wild  and  roam  every- 
where      On   favorable   nights  when  the  air  is  still   and  the 
moonlight  full,  these  incorrigible  cats  join  in  such  an  un- 
earthly  caterwauling  that  the  natives  turn  out  en  masse  to  in- 
terdict  them.     The  shrieks  of  the  tempest  can  not  comoare 
with  the  ferocity  of  the  chorus.     But  for  all,  they  decimate 
the   mice.     1  here  are   no  reptiles  on  the  islands,  and  no 
mosquitoes  nor  venomous  flies  ;  but  there  is  a  variety  of  fly 
which  settles  down  upon  the  grass  of  the  killing-grounds 
making  the  surface  appear  as  it  it  were  bedaubed  with  liquid 
stove-pohsh,  for  the  color   they   impart.     Their  food  is  the 
blood   and   oftal   of  the  slaughter.     The   perfume  of  the 
fnbylovs  is  intense,  and  one  may  perceive   the  odor  far  at 
sea  when  the  wind  is  fair.     On  a  hot  day  in  the  close  cabins 
of  the  village  it  would  be  overpowering  to  any  body  who  was 
not  used  to  it.     No  fish  can  be  caught  within  the  vicinity 
as  the  seals  devour  all  that  approach. 

Six  miles  north  froi^j  St.  Paul  Island  is  Otter  Island,  once 
frequented   by   herds  of  sea  otters,  a  sheer,  cold  and  un- 
broken  mural  precipice,  except  at  a  low  depression  on  the 
north   side.     Its  walls   average  300  feet   in   height.     It  is 
fairly  over-run  with  blue  foxes.     Walrus  Island  lies  six  miles 
southwest,  the  abode  of  many  of  these  huge  animals,  some 
of  which  will  weigh  a  ton.      It  is  a  mere  ledge  barely  lifted 
above  the  wash  of  angry  waves,  only  a  fourth  of  a  milelona 
and  100  yards  wide.     It  literally  swarms  with  wild  fowl  and 
IS,  therefore,  very  convenient  for  eggers,  who,  in  other  local- 
ities,  have  to  climb  1  -  precipices,  and   swing  from   iuttin? 
ledges  to  gather  their  plunder.     There  is  an  island  200 
miles  north  of  St.  Paul,  but  having  no  commercial  connection 
wiMi  It,  called  St.  Matthew,  which  is  of  volcanic  origin,  and 
fairly  swarms  with  polar  bears,  which  sometimes  measure 
eight  feet  long  and  weigh  1,200   pounds.     They  are  very 
timid,  and  flee  precipitately,  old  and   young,  upon  the  ap- 
proach  of  man.     There  are  deserted  Russian  cabins  on  the 
island,  which  were  built  and  once  occupied  by  bear-hunters 
who  did  a  big  business  in   meat,  pelts  and    oil.     The  tradi- 
tional ferocity  of  these  animals  seems  to  have  wholly  petered 
out  in  this  sub-Arctic  ursine  community. 

The  Pribylov  Islands  were  first  peopled  by  a  native  colony 
brought  over  from  Oonalashka  and  other  Aleutian  neighbor- 
hoods by  the  Russian  fur-sealers  in  1786,  and  were  employed 
in  their  service  ;  but  they  lived  miserably  in  hovels  which 
were  half  dug-out.  Now  under  the  American  regime,  and 
the  fostering  care  of  the  Alaska  Commercial  Company  their 
progeny  are  happy  and  well  provided  for  in  all  those  respects 


fl! 


THE  SEALS  OF  PRIB  YLQ  V.  j g e 

Sred  tnl  ^^^t  '^'  '^'-^'     ^^ere  are  two 

wo  people,  of  whom  four  are  wZes      On  h  Vk    T  T""^^^' 
family  lives  in  a  snusr  fr^m^H     tr       "  ^°^^  '^'^"^s  each 

with  t'arred  papeVffisLT^itta't^erdlud'^'H'^ 
houses  complete.    Streets  are  I^iri  ^,.f       ^  ^   .'  ^"^  °"'- 
there  is  a  large  church  at  It  I     i      '  ^""^  ""egularly  platted  ; 
George  ;  a  hfspitaUt  Xv^T^'^l^  ^  ''"^^'^^  °"^  ^^  St 
drugs,  and  phvs  dan.  on  h  .K'•'^''^^  complete  stock  of 

peo?i;  ;  a  sctehrs?on  'eth  '  iS  To^'^  ^H^"  °^'^« 
are  paid  bv  the  mm.^L,  >        •  'f'^'^d,  for  which  teachers 

instruct  the  youth  o'^fe  of  Th  ^'^^\  "^T^^  '"  ^^e  year  to 
Aleut  who  accomDlishpH  1  f  '^  '^^^^^""^  ^^'"&  ^  native 
Rutland,  Vtan7astnin"''7^f'  ^°""«  «f  study  in 

the  trading- ship'bH^g; the  laTe'st  Sh ''  "'"^"^^  ^  ^^^^ 
enjoys  a  holiday  opeST?,  '*/''''?  °"''  ^"^  everybody 
the  Russian  language  ^'.nH./'^''''^  '^'^'^«  ^''^  ^^^Id  \vy 
entirely  bv  nafvecontHh^H  their  support  is  maintained 
and  eighty  dwemngs  on  St   S-^  eighty  families 

George,  besides  eight  other  TfructuTe.  ^""^V^^^'  "'  S'- 
commercial  all  Dainted°.nH  k  u  u  ?'  ecclesiastical  and 
that  the  set  lemrnsn^^^^^^^^^  ^^  «'^'"ed  mechanics,  so 

of  Eastern  villages  ^fCZf^S^'Z'  "^  '°  '^  "^^^^^« 
and  eaeerlv  disr.i«  ft"    ^'^/"^'^'^ss  in  modern  attirf:. 

silk   "tfes^trunknow^n'^^'p  h^t^s.^l 

season,  they  have  absoSnn.?^''P'  i*"""^  ^^^  s^^l'^g 
and  vegetafe.  lullv  two  In  H^  '°.^°  ^"'  ««  *«  ^^^"'•eh 
year  afe  occup^d^   observ^^^h^^^  ^he 

Many  sleep  aw^y  their  timf  J  f^  rel.g.ous    calendar, 

fiddle  and  accordeoi  ^rV.  ^"^p.'^ble  ;  some  play  the 
There  are  nrDolicemLn  ni  P^P^''-^^^"  '■"  ^^^>'  o'-derly. 
crimes,  and  no  insSe  n'^"";;'  ^^  Justice,  no  fines,  no 
frequently  the  islaSs  '  ak-  ^  •  '"'  ^°'  "''""•  Q^'^e 
on  the  mainland  and  t?vkif  (rTlf"  '^"'''  ^^'^^'^«« 
'•doing-  the  metVopc^is  SIV^^^^^^^^^^ 
burg,  be  it  known,  for  it  Sounts  stl^""  >ns,gn.ficant 
tourists,  tile  traveler!  u,h«  .™"""ts  hitka.  I  here  are 
end,  bu   there  are  half  r  1      "f"'  ^"^'  ^''^^""'^  ^"^^  'and's 

along  the  IIZ^^^  ^^  t'vukoT'wf  •  Tk*  '^''"^  "-^• 
population.  P    ^  ^"'^°"'  ^h'eh  have  a  larger 

Mess's.  HutchinsoT^!"  u'    ^^'"P''^"^  ^««  -'"g-ni^ed   by 
in  r869      With  Xrs  who  w^^^  ^^^  ^^"ff'^"^  men! 

Alaska  purchase  theVrnm  J    '^^^"^  '^  negotiations  for  the 

and  duri'n g  tlt^UiTu^'X  ha":5  rlL!ll^l -' J^'^-'^. 

^  vjxiiiui  or  them. 


if: 


196 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


Wfe   i-i 


The  methods  of  the  company  are  now  complete,  and  it 
seems  alniost  impossible  to  improve  upon  them.     Abuses 
and  breach  of  trust  are  almost  impossible  within  the  environ- 
ment  of  restrictions  by  which  they  are  hedged  about,  and 
t  would  be  utterly  impossible  to  catch  more  than  the  stipu- 
lated  quota  of  seals  without  the  fact  becoming  known  at 
once.      Only  once  have  they  caught  the  full  complement 
tZ  ^""^"^If   thousand)  allowed  by  law,   and  then  only 
nadverfently.      Their   rule   is  to   make  the  number  one 
thousand  scant  so  as  to   avoid   carping   criticisms.     The 
breeding  grounds  are  protected,  and  obstreperous  old  males 
diligently  kept  off  from  them,  but  they  are  allowed  to  come 
to  all  other  localities.     One  million  seal  pups  are  born  every 
year  and  of  these  there  is  a  loss  of  fifty  per  cent,  by  whales 
sharks,  and  predatory  creatures,  after  they  leave  for  their 
foraging  grounds.    While  breeding  they  strictly  fast.    When 
they  leave  they  go  in  independent  gangs,  and  not  all  at  once, 
and  they  range  as  far  south  as  the  forty-seventh  parallel 
Seals  are  in  their  prime  at  from  four  to  five  years  of  age 
and   only  those  which  are  desirable  are  selected  for  the 
annual  drive.     An  average  seal  will  measure  six  and  a  half 
teet  long  and  weigh  four  hundred  pounds,   but  thev  are 
caught  up  to  SIX  hundred  pounds  and  seven  and  a  half  feet 
?"^'  2\'^  l^^''^^''^^,  within  the  power  of  accurate  calcula- 
tion,  that  there  are  over  three  millions  of  seals   jn  each 
•  -  nIH   h"  ^J«,b''^^?'"g season,  not  counting  the  non-breeders, 
old  bachelors,"  etc.     The  entire  catch  of  one  hundred 
thousand  seals  is  now  made  in  about  thirty  working  days 
A^ltf    c'T?   '^'  -'^th   day  of  June  and  the  ist  of 
August.     Seals  do  remain  longer  than  the  latter  date,  but 
their  fur  deteriorates  rapidly.     The  sealers  work  under  the 
direction  of  foremen,  who  receive  the  wages  due  for  their 
work,  according  to  the  tale,  and  divide  it  among  them 
making  up  a  number  of  extra  shares  over  and  above  the 
men  s,  which  go  to  the  widows,  the  priest  and  the  church 
I  hey  receive  forty  cents  per  seal,  and  fifty  cents  to  one 
dollar  per  day  for  mcidental  labor.     It  is  estimated  that 
more  than  four  millions  of  sealskins  have  been  taken  from 
nrri/i    X    ""',  "'r'^''   '797-     When  the   killing  season  has 
arrived,  details  of  men  run  in  between  the  sleeping  .seals 
and  the  surf-wash,  and  drive  them  slowly  to  designated 
slaughtering  grounds,  at  a  speed  of  half  a  mile  an  hour, 
halting  them  occasionally  to  rest  and  cool  off,  for  heating 
injures  their  fur  ;  and  it  is  a  comical  sight  to  see  the  long 
procession   urged  on  by  shouts  and  clappin^^  of  whale  thigh- 
bones,  and  gesticulating  arms  on  the  flanks  and  rear,  wad- 


THE  SEALS  OF  PRIB YLOV.  197 

dling,  panting,  gasping  and  shuffling  along  like  so  manv 
fat  men,  m  the  most  awkward  manner  conceivable      Some^ 
tmes  an  old  bull-seal,  adipose  and  unwieldy  who  can  not 
travel  with  the  younger  ones,  falls  to  the  eaVrh  suoinelv 
entirely  exhausted,  hot,  and  -  clean  done  up  "     Sher' 

inoments,  the  march  at  once  ceases,  ^nrevery  seal  /aJ^ 

was  not  lemonade  enough  to  so  round      Wh^n  M.       \ 
^-P-t-"y  cooled  o|  the^marcht  de^hl^eume^' 
Finally  the  slaughter-ground  is  reached  and  the  sell  are 
told  off  in  squads  of  one  hundred  and  fifty,  and  at  a  I'ven 
r  ?h.  .'h'i  TT'^'^'^l'  '''  ^^  ^i^^h  clubs^ai'd  la?  them  ou" 

tl^erateof  on;in'''        ^^  ''^'^  "''  ^"'^^^  ^"^  skinned  a 
Hrfnl  ♦I     •  u    "  ^""""'y  ^°"''  minutes,  although  experts  have 
done  the  job  in  a  minute  and  .-  half.     The  clubs  are  Jv 

wooJ^^Sd"""'  ^"f"'  in  diameter  at  the  but!  made  oThard 
fTthisTe  vi'e^'^thr  1    an  excelle'nro ^"'  ?'■  'T^^'' 
indulge  in  sentim^nL^ism,' bu^M  Xa^rs^eS 
languid  eyes  that  plead  before  the  uplifted  dub  and  tSe 
heart-rending  moans  which  come  from  those  not  dead    Mv 

nre'dircriV'"  '^^^^^^""^^  ^--'-^  ^oV:.it:'j^ 

salt  between,"  and  havmg  been  allowed  t^o  we^L^n  which 

id^and'  ^hln'd  7  i"  'f '^^^°^  two  skins  each   haifout 
he  Hvtn     f^r"^  ^"^  ^°"'^°"  '''^  New  York  or  Panama  to 

fur  steals'  tLZ^'Tl  '^'"^  ^''  ^'''  ^""--^'-^  th^n  the 
coatnf  .Hff  h  ,T  ^"'"^  Visible,  but  concealed  by  a 
coat  of  stiff  hair,  dull  gray,  brown  and  grizzled  The  art 
of  dying  ,n  its  perfection  is  said  to  be  possessed  bv  onlv 
one  concern  in  London,  although  there  a^em.nvoth^r 
dyers  ;  and  there  is  at  Albany,  in^the^ate  of  VJw^orl  a 
firm  which  does  splendid  work,  but  their  dye  color  is  said 
to  be  l.ghter  and  not  so  rich  as  the  EngUshmanV    The 

cost    of   a  fur    COmP«     fr..m    o    o«~.k:  — .:    ^       ,      ^"^-        ^"« 

„  wmumauun  or    causes  and 


m 


m 


198 


OUR  NEW  ALA  SKA. 


i»»  ' 


expenses  which,  it  is  affirmed,  will  keep  the  price  up  always 
to  near  is  present  f.^^nre.  The  Alaska  C^ompany  has 
stations  all  oyer  the  Aleutian  Islands  west  and  nofth  of 
Kodiak,  and  employs  four  steamers,  and  a  dozen  ships  barks 
and  sloops,  besides  working  boats.  Its  lease  expires  f^  1800 
but  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  will  be  renewed  ^  ' 

nnlf  '^^'^^"d  sea  otters  are  sometimes  caught  in  lar^e 

couyer's'  ?Ind'  ^'T'  f  ^T  ^"^  ^^^  ^^^^  ^^^^^  «"  V?n 
the    tla^iJn     '     f"  '"t  ^'""''"^  """^^^^^  by  the  Indians  on 
the   Alaskan   coast.     Last  winter  the  fur  seals  seemed  to 
be    frequenting    the   waters    of    southeastern   Alaska     n 

ISThelast  l"'"^-     ""'^  "^'^^"^^  ^'-^  "he  shortsa? 
tnat  the  last  large  run  was  twenty  years  a^o  and  was  fol 

lowed  immed  ately  after  by  a  run^of  sea  otfer^,  and  They  are 
hoping  for  a  like  result  now.  The  Sitka  pap^r  says  tha?  a 
good  many  fur  seal  skins,  both  of  pups  and  grown  seals 
have  lately  reached  the  Sitka  market.  In  188?  th^re  were 
en  schooners  engaged  in  British  waters,  empVying  for  y 
ailors  and  296  hunters,  the  latter  chiefly  india^ns,Th^o  usej 
148  cedar  canoes,  and  they  took  upward  of  9,000  fu?  seals 

wort'h'ro  aTdT^'Tf^^'^'/^  ^''^'°°°-     '^he  former  are 
worth  }|gio,  and  the  latter  fifty  cents.     Only  ninety-six  se- 

otters  were  caught,  marketable  at  $50  each.^  ^        ''^" 

^    1  his  brief  synopsis  will  suffice  to  conyey  an  idea  of  an 

fortfs  o7ai1Y'"^  "-^u  ^f  !'«l^"ds,  and  the  mountains  and 
we  are  reldt  ?^  ?  ""'^  "^^T  ""^^'-^''^^th  and  dampness, 
wLr.  H •    ^-       ^"'^  """^  ^"^^'  eastward,  and  homeward 

tie  till-  dan^tinT  7T'"^  eminence' which  oyerboks 
tne  tii..u  and  tillable  land,  we  yiew  scores  of  blue  lakes 
basking  in  the  mellow  haze,  groves  of  party-colored  foliage 
coyeringallthe  hillsides,  fields  dotted  with  con?cal  straw 
piles  and  ricks  of  hay,  meadows  alive  with  grazing  kne  and 

S'of'H'°'""?  ""Tir^  '"^^^  suffusion  of  thfdawntng 
light  of  day.     And  all  the  mirrored  lakes  reflect  the  form 

the   radian"    bn7''"?'  'T'^  ''  ^^^  looking-glass  reflect 
helhten.n;  thJ  1i  '^'^^^^¥[^8    their   crimson   blush   and 
w-.i!      F  'h^  ^^^^*  °^  ''^^"'  tremulous  emotion 

ness  .ndfh'5."^^P^^^'"u^  ^^  exchange  rankness  for  rich- 
ness,  and  the  tangle  of  the  unkempt  forest  for  the  bright 

S  Jh  J,°7  ""^  'h.^  ^"^'^"  ^"'""^er  pervades  the 
land  ;  and  while  1  gaze  with  rapture  upon  the  golden  land- 

etTot'p'ecdon"^  ftT  ""^  I"  ''''  t^^^^'^^^^  ''^^  ''p'^"'^ 
retrospection.      Its  generations  have    long    since   passed 


THE  SEALS  OF  PRIBYLOV,  '       199 

away  and  the  ashes  of  their  fallen  dead  lie  hurifH  ^w 
around;  but  its  stately  shadow  is  projected  we  twaX^^^^^^^ 

erecrin"a7rthH°"""  ?^^^  its  mighty  kindred  stilsTand 
finler  ,t  nnin.=  Tl^^}  S'-a^deur  ;  and  like  a  prophetic 
PulcHASE^"  Fv'^  ^"'^J\'°  '^"  ^^'"«  «f  the  '<  Seward 
fronds  tnre^ref  of  ^h'^^  ?^'  '°"«^^  '^^^^^^  its  weathered 
th:?utu?e"folpec[s  orA?^^^^^^^  ^^'^P-  ^°P^  f- 


•■#3^ 


AN  EXCURSION  PAftTV 


APPENDIX. 


r< 


■Hi- 


AN  ACT  PROVIDING  A  CIVIL  GOVERNMENT  FOR  AL>\SKA. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
of  the  United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled :  That 
the  territory  ceded  to  the  United  States  by  Russia  by  the 
treaty  of  March  thirtieth,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty- 
seven,  and  known  as  Alaska,  shall  constitute  a  civil  and 
judicial  district,  the  gov-rnment  of  which  shall  be  organ- 
ized and  administered  as  hereinafter  provided.  The  tem- 
porary seat  of  government  of  said  district  is  hereby  estab- 
lished at  Sitka. 

Section  2.  That  there  shall  be  appointed  for  the  said 
district  a  governor,  who  shall  reside  therein  during  his 
term  of  office  and  be  charged  with  the  interests  of  the 
United  States  Government  that  may  arise  within  said  dis- 
trict.  To  the  end  aforesaid  he  shall  have  authority  to  see 
that  the  laws  enacted  for  said  district  are  enforced,  and  to 
require  the  faithful  discharge  of  their  duties  by  the  officials 
appointed  to  administer  the  same.  ^Je  may  also  grant 
reprieves  for  offenses  committed  against  the  laws  of  the 
district  or  of  the  United  States  until  the  decision  of  the 
President  thereon  shall  be  made  known.  He  shall  be  ex 
officio  commander-in-chief  of  the  militia  of  said  district,  and 
shall  have  power  to  call  out  the  same  when  necessary  to 
the  due  execution  of  the  laws  and  to  preserve  the  peace  ; 
and  to  cause  all  able-bodied  citizens  of  the  United  States 
in  said  district  to  enroll  and  serve  as  such  when  the  public 
exigency  demands;  and  he  shall  perform  generally  in  and 
over  said  district  such  acts  as  pertain  to  the  office  of  gov- 
ernor of  a  territory,  so  far  as  the  same  may  be  made  or  be- 
come applicable  thereto.  He  shall  make  an  annual  report 
on  t:.e  first  day  of  October  in  each  year,  to  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  of  his  official  acts  and  doings,  and  of 
the  condition  of  said  district,  with  refeyrences  to  its  resources, 
industries,  population,  and  the  admmistration  of  the  civil 
government  thereof.  And  the  President  of  the  United 
States  shall  have  power  to  review  and  to  confirm  or  annul 
any  reprieves  granted  or  other  acts  done  by  him. 


APPENDIX.  201 

Section  3.     That  there  shall  be,  and  hereby  is    estab- 
lished  a  district  court  for  said  district,  with  the  civil  and 
criminal  jurisdiction  of  district  courts  of  the  United  States 
exercising  the  jurisdiction  of  circuit  courts,  and  such  other 
jurisx^iction    not    inconsistent   with    this    act,  as  may  be 
established  by  law  ;  and  a  district  judge  shall  be  appointed 
for  said  district    who  shall  during  his  term  of  officTrLs  de 
therein,  and  hold  at  least  two  terms  of  said  court  therein 
m  each  year,  one  at  Sitka,  beginning  on  the  first  Monday 
in  May,  and  the  other  at  Wrangell.  beginning  on  the  first 
Monday  m  November.     He  is  alfo  authSrizedLd  directed 
to  ho  d  such  special  sessions  as  may  be  necessary  for  the 
dispatch  of  the  business  of  said  court,  at  such  times  and 
p^ces  in  said  district  as  he  may  deem  expedient,  and  may 
adjourn  such  special  session  to  any  other  time  previoii<=  ^o  a 
regular  session.     He  shall  have  authority  to  employ  intert 

Sf'hfs''c;.urt  '"  "'''''  '"°'^'"'''  '°^  ^'^  necessary^xVensJs 

ronrf^'T*^;,  n^^^  ^^^'i^  '^^"  b^  appointed  for  said 
court  who  shal  oe  ex  officio  secretary  and  treasurer  of 
said  d  strict ;  a  district-attorney,  and  a  marshal,  all  of  whom 
sha  during  their  terms  of  office  reside  therein.  The  clerk 
shall  record  and  preserve  copies  of  all  the  laws,  proceed- 
lags,  and  official  acts  applicable  to  said  district.  He  shall 
also  receive  all  moneys  collected  from  fines,  forfeitures  or 
in  any  other  manner  except  from  violations  of  the  custom 
laws,  and  shall  apply  the  same  to  the  incidental  expensed 
of  said  district  court,  and  the  allowances  thereof  as  di?e?ted 

K'i^l"'^^7^/"'^'"r,'""^^^^"  ^^^°""t  for  the  same 
n  detail,  and  for  any  balances  on  account  thereof,  quar- 
terly,  to  and  under  the  direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  He  shall  be  ex  officio  recorder  of  deeds  and  mort! 
gages  and  certificates  of  location  of  mining  claims  and 
other  con  racts  relating  to  real  estate  and  register  of  w^Ms 
for  said  district,  and  shall  establish  secure  offices  in  the 
towns  of  Sitka  and  Wrangell,  in  said  district,  for  the  safe 
keeping  of  all  his  official  records,  and  of  records  concern! 
ing    the    reformation   and   establishment   of  the    present 

Th  f.K^''^''''°  ^^"^^'  ^^  hereafter  directed:  P^Md 
1  hat  the  district  court  hereby  created  may  direct  if  it 
shal  deem  expedient,  the  establishment  of  separate  offices 
at  the  settlements  at  Wrangell,  Oonalashka,  and  Juneau 
City,  respectively,  for  the  recording  of  such  instriments 
as  may  pertain  to  the  several  natural  divisions  of  said  d"! 
S"'-  .r°"''^"'^"^^^'^"^'^"'^"^^"ts,  the  limits  of  whic»> 
shall,  in  the  event  of  such  direction,  be  defined  by  saia 


202 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


%U 


court;  and  said  offices  shall   be  in  charge  of  the  commis- 
sioners  respectively  hereinafter  provided 

Section  5.     That  there  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Presi- 
den   four  commissioners  in  and   for  the  said  district,  who 
shall  have  the  jurisdiction  and  powers  of  commissioners  of 
the  United  States  circuit  courts  in  any  part  of  said  district 
but  who  shall  reside,  one  at  Sitka,  one  at  Wrangell,  one  at 
Oonalashka,  and  one  at  Juneau  City.     Such  commissioners 
saall  exercise  all  the  duties  and  powers,  civil  and  criminal 
now  conferred  on  justices  of  the  peace  under  the  ffeneral 
laws  of  the  state  of  Oregon,  so  far  as  the  same  may  be 
appl-cable  la  said  district,  and  may  not  be  in  conflict  with 
this  act,  or  the  laws  of  the  United  States.     They  shall  also 
have  jurisdiction,  subject  to  the  supervision  of  the  district 
judge,    a  all  testamentary  and  probate  matters,  and  for  this 
purpose  their  courts  shall  be  opened  at  stated  terms  and  be 
courts  of  record,  and  be  provided  with  a  seal  fortheauthen- 
tication  of  their  official  acts.     They  shall  also  have  power 
to  grant  writs  of  habeas  corpus  for  the  purpose  of  inquiring 
into  the  cause  of  restraint  of  liberty,  which  writs  shall  be 
mnde  returnable  before  the  said  district  judge  for  said  dis- 
trict ;  arid  like  proceedings  shall  be  had  thereon  as  if  the 
same  had  been  granted  by  said  judge  under  the  general 
laws  of  the  United  States  in  such  ksfs.     Said  commission 
ers  shall  also  have  the  powers  of  notaries  public,  and  shall 
keep  a  record  of  all  deeds  and  other  instruments  of  writing 
acknowledged  before  them  and  rehting  to  the  title  to  or 
transfer  of  property  within  said  district,  which  record  shall 
be  subject  to  public  inspection.     Said  commissioners  shall 
also  keep  a  record  of  all  fines  and  forfeitures  received  by 
tnem,  and  shall  pay  over  the  same  quarterly  to  the  clerk  of 
said  district  court.     The  governor  appointed  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act  shall,  from  time  to  time,  inquire  into  the 
operations  of  the  Alaska  Seal  and  Fur  Company,  and  shall 
annually  report  to  Congress  the  result  of  such  inquiries  and 
any  and  all  violations  by  said  company  of  the  agreement 
existing  between  the  United  States  and  said  company 

Section  6.  That  the  marshal  for  said  district  shall'  have 
the  g -ncral  authority  and  powers  of  the  United  States  mar- 
shals of  the  states  and  territories.  He  shall  be  the  execu- 
tive officer  of  said  court,  and  charged  with  the  execution  of 
all  processes  of  said  court  and  with  the  transportation  and 
custody  of  prisoners,  and  shall  be  ex-officio  keeper  of  the 
jail  or  penitentiary  of  said  uistrict.  He  shall  appoint  four 
deputies,  who  shall  reside  severally  at  the  towns  of  Sitka 
Wrangell,  Oonalashka  and  Juneau  City,  and  they  shall  res- 


APPENDIX.  V    203 

^tcixvtXyhtex-officio  constables  and  executive  nffi 

the  commissioners'  courts  herpin  t.^  A^f       ,    officers  of 

the  powers  ?nd  disch™  the ^^  shall  have 

case  shall  be  carried  ^t  by  SneSt  ^h  '"^,  "™'"^' 
tentiary  hereinafter  provided  for  Rn.  ?»,  ^^'i  '''  P^"*' 
court  shall  have  exclu'-ivpinHcH^:-  •  '  ^^^  ^^'^  district 
or  those  involving  a  Ques?'''f'^!; '"  ^"  ^^^es  in  equity 

rights,  or  the  conft.futr  y^fa'aw  fnd  tn"';)?^  "'"'"? 
offenses  whch  are  canifal      t«  ofi     • '•,  ^ '"  ^''  cnmma 

law,  any  issue  of  fact  shall"  h-^'"^  ''''  -  ^^'''  ^'  '^°'"'"°" 
instance  of  eith     pa  tf^^^^^^  jury,  at  the 

civil  or  criminal  from  the  Muriel??  ^^  "'^''"^l  ^'^  '"  ^"^  case, 

to  the  said  dist   ct  c"u  t  Jher^.T   °^  '^''^.  ^^'"'"issioners 

Civil  case  is  ^wo  hundred  doMnrc  ^  ^'"""""^  '"^^^^^^  '"  ^"7 ' 

inal  case  where  a  fine  of  mnr.^  ^'  "'°'^'  ^"^  '"  ^"y  crim- 

imprisonmtnris^Xs  d  ^  ^p  ^, -^,t^^ 

appeal  bond  by  the  oartv  ann^^iJ«„  !    1!  ^  °^  ^  sufficient 

court  or  comm^ission^er  ^^w'r^?'7erroM„'PP'""-'^      ''^^ 
shal  issue  to  the  saiH  ricfriof      ®\^"or  m  criminal  cases 

circuit  court  for  the  diirirnfn"''  ^'^-"^  ^^  United  States 
in  chapter  one  hundred  .nH^^^°"  '"  '^^  ^^^^«  P^^vided 
eightee^n  hundred  and  seventv  nine"''."?  .t  *-'^  '^^^  ^^ 
therebyconferreduDonHn^^iT/;^  !'•  u"^  ^^^  jurisdiction 
circuit  court  of  Oregon  And  ZT  '\  ^.^'jby  given  to  the 
crees  of  said  circuit  and  dit?,l       ^"^'  Judgments  or  de- 

the  supreme  cTurt  of  ?heSeH'^°^"'^    """'•  ^'  ^^'''^'^'^  ^^ 
Sec?io V  8     T\S-  f hi  cffn   r  ?*-^*^^  ^'  '"  °*her  cases. 

created  aland  dltJictLn  I  n'^^  "^'^'^^  ''  ^"^^^^ 

said  district  is  hfeby^ocaledYtt^^^^^  "^'^^  ^°^ 

provided  for  by  this  act  tnrifi     !  e-  ,  ^^^  commissioner 

register  of  said'land  office  and  fh'.  ^f'l  ''^^"•^  ^^"^•^^^'^ 
this  act  shall  be  ."4^^'';ece4r  of  ^  P^-^v^ded  for  by 
marshal  provided  fofby  this  Let  ,hrh'^  '"°"^>^''  ^"^  the 
of  said  district,  and  the  laws  of  fh.  A  ^^  .^"'^eyor-general 
to  mining  Claires  and  thl  nlhfc  •  -Y"''^^  " -^'^s  relating 
and  aftef  the^assage  of  th  f  ^n^  '".f '"^"".^  '^"''^t^'  ^^all,  from 


.1  ! 


204 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA. 


'I  I 
111,1 


I 


Provided,  That  the  Indians  or  other  persons  in  said  district 
shall  not  be  disturbed  in  the  possession  of  any  lands, 
actually  in  their  use  or  occupation  or  now  claimed  by  them, 
but  the  terms  under  which  such  persons  may  acquire  title  to 
such  lands  is  reserved  for  future  legislation  by  Congress  : 
And  provided  further,  That  parties  who  have  located  mines 
or  mineral  privileges  therein  under  the  laws  of  the  United 
States  applicable  to  the  public  domain,  or  who  have  occu- 
pied and  improved  or  exercised  acts  of  ownership  over  such 
claims,  shall  not  be  disturbed  therein,  but  shall  be  allowed 
to  perfect  their  title  to  such  claims  by  payment  as  aforesaid  : 
And  provided  also,  That  the  land  not  exceeding  six  hundred 
and  forty  acres  at  any  station  now  occupied  as  missionary 
stations  among  the  Indian  tribes  in  said  section,  with  the 
improvements  thereon  erected  by  or  for  such  societies,  shall 
be  continued  in  the  occupancy  of  the  several  religious  soci- 
eties to  which  said  missionary  stations  respectively  belong 
until  action  by  Congress.  But  nothing  contained  in  this 
act  shall  be  construed  to  put  in  force  in  said  district  the 
general  land  laws  of  the  United  States. 

Section  9.  That  the  governor,  attorney,  judge,  marshal, 
clerk  and  commissioners  provided  for  in  this  act  shall  be 
appointed  by  the   President  cf  the  United  States,  by  and 
with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  and  shall  hold 
their  respective  offices  for  the  term  of  four  years,  and  until 
their  successors   are  appointed  and  qualified.     They  shall 
severally   receive  the  fee  of  office  established  by  law  for 
the  several  offices  the  duties  of  which  have  been  hereby 
conferred   upon  them,   as  the  same  are   determined   and 
allowed  in  respect  of  similar  offices  under  the  laws  ct  the 
United  States,  which  fees  shall  be  reported  to  the  attorney- 
general  and  paid   into  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States. 
They    shall    receive    respectively  the     following    annual 
salaries  :  The  governor,  the  sum  of  three  thousand  dollars  ; 
the  attorney,  the  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars  ;  the  mar- 
shal, *he  sum  of  two  thousanc'  five  hundred  dollars  ;  the 
judge,  the  sum  of  three  thousand  dollars;  and  the  clerk, 
the  sum  of  two  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  payable  to 
them  quarterly  from  the  Treasury  of  the  United   States. 
The  district  judge,  marshal  and  district  attorney  shall  be 
paid  their  actual,  necessary  expenses  when  t»-aveling  in  the 
discharge  of  their  official  duties.     A  detailed  account  shall 
be  rendered  of  such  expenses  under  oath,  and  as  to  the 
marshal    and    district    attorney  such    account    shall    be 
approved   by  the  judge,  ana  as  to  his  expenses  by  the 
attorney-general.      The   commissioners  shall  receive  the 


APPENDIX. 


205 


usual  fees  Of  United  States  commissioners  and  of  iustices 

fees  of  constables  in  Oregon,  shall  receive  each  a  saLrv 
of  seven  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  which  salaries  S 
a  so   be   payable   quarterly  out   of   the  Treasurv   nf^K 

tak^n  befori  /h^  execute  the  sarr^.  which  said  oath  may  be 

sai^i  district  before^entring'u'pl';hed^^^^^^^^ 

Uni  ed  s'J?'  """J^'f  '"3"'.'^^  ^^  '^^'  ^"d  the  law   of  the 
united  States,  not  locally  inapplicable  to  said  distrir/  Ha 

not  mconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  are  herehv 

extended  thereto,  but  there  shall  be  no  leSsfative  Lsemh^l 

execute  a  bond,  with  sufficient  sureties,  in   the  nemlfv  nf 

upo,nhrdutSof%r:ffiTf  "'^'"'^  "^'o''  -'"-« 

dis»TJ7';,'r.'^'"",?''°I"'=  P"''"'=  buildings  in  said 
Civil   government,  and  the  Secretary   of  the   TreL,?rv   i! 

ernment  herel.y  provi.lod!  and  to  S^de/.  u he  biaS 

Section  h    That  the  attorney-general  is  directed  forth 
with  to  compile  and  cause  to  be  printed   in  the  Fn  iLh 

governor,  attorney,  jud       clerk  mireh'.ic  ..,,1  • 

ers  annnin^«H  f«J      •  i    i'     .^^^  marsh.ils  and  commission, 
era  appointed  for  said  district,  and  shall  furnish  for  the 


li' 


III 


ao6 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA, 


-.- 


use  of  the  officers  of  the  said  territory  so  many  copies  as 
may  be  needed  of  the  laws  of  Oregon  applicable  to  said 
district. 

Section  12.  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shall 
select  two  of  the  officers  to  be  appointed  under  this  act, 
who,  together  with  the  governor,  shaU  constitute  a  commis- 
sion to  examine  into  and  report  upon  the  condition  of  the 
Indians  residing  in  said  territory,  what  lands,  if  any,  should 
be  reserved  for  their  use,  what  provision  shall  be  made  for 
their  education,  what  rights  by  occupation  of  settlers  should 
be  recognized,  and  all  other  facts  that  may  be  n  ^cessary  to 
enable  Congress  to  determine  what  limitations  may  be  im- 
posed when  the  land  laws  of  the  United  States  shall  be 
extended  to  said  district  ;  and  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
said  commission  the  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars  is  hereby 
appropriated  out  of  any  moneys  in  the  treasury  not  other- 
wise appropriated. 

Section  13.  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shall 
make  needful  and  proper  provision  for  the  education  of  the 
children  of  school  age  in  the  Territory  of  Alaska,  without 
reference  to  race,  until  such  time  as  permanent  provision 
shall  be  made  for  the  same,  and  the  sum  of  twenty-five 
thousand  dollars,  or  so  much  thereof  as  may  be  necessary, 
is  herebv  appropriated  for  this  purpose. 

Section  14.  That  the  provision  of  chapter  three,  title 
twenty-three,  of  the  Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States, 
relating  to  the  unrecognized  Territory  of  Alaska,  shall 
remain  in  full  force,  except  as  herein  specially  otherwise 
provided  ;  and  the  importation,  manufacture  and  sale  of 
intoxicating  liquors  in  said  district  except  for  medicinal, 
mechanical  and  scientific  purposes,  is  hereby  prohibited 
under  the  penalties  which  are  provided  in  section  nineteen 
hundred  and  fifty-five  of  the  revised  statutes  for  the 
wrongful  importation  of  distilled  sj-irits.  And  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  shall  make  such  regulations  as 
are  necessary  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  this  section. 

Approved,  May,  17,  1834. 


APPENDIX  B. 

PACIFIC  COAST  EXCURSIONS. 

The  following  round  trip  excursion  rates  will  herpnft^r 
be  made  from  St.    Paul,    Minneapolis,    DuluTh    Suoer  or 
Fargo,  or  intermediate  points  east  of  Fargo  to  Portland:  ' 


In  parties  of  lo,  each. . 

;;    "  15.  "  .. 

"  20,  "  .. 

:;    "  25.  "  .. 

"    "  30.  "  .. 


. .$165.00 
. .  160.00 
..  155.06 
. .  150.06 
• .  140.00 


In  parties  of  35,  each. . .  .$130.00 

::   ;:4o.  ••  ...  120.00 

,45.            ...    110.00 
50    or  more, 
^^ch ,00.00 


rates"/4"o"'""  '"'''  ''  ^"""^^  ^"^  ^^'"^"'  ^^d  to  above 
rJeTpoT'""  '''''  '°  "^'^^^"^  ^"^  ^^^"^".  -dd  to  above 
ab^;e^rst5.oa"  ^°  ^'^^^' ^'-k^' -^  return,  add  to 
nn!^fr?"i^^  ^'''^'^  °"  ^^°^^  t'ckets  to  Stop  over  at  all 

«:^s:;s;on^&^ 


PRICE  OF  TICKETS  TO  ALASKA  AND  RETURN. 

INCLUDING  BERTH  AND  MEALS  ON  STEAMER. 

From  San  Francisco,  via  Victoria  and  Townsend.  and 
returnmg  same   way..  \ 

San  Francisco,  via  Victoria,  'and  'retu"rning 'via  ^' '^ 

"     pJrT^A^  "'^'^"^  ''"^  Columbia  River.    . .       x,, 
Portland,  Oregon,  via  Astoria. .  ,^^ 

fN  P  R  «  .  T        """^     '"  ""^''^  ^  '*""'t  Townsend  ) 

I  nrt  Townsend . .  ' 

"     Victoria,  B.  C. . . .     9° 

90 


li 


II 


208 


OUR  NEW  ALASKA . 


CALIFORNIA  EXCURSIONISTS 

Can  return  via  Portland,  Oregon,  and  the  Northern  Pacific 
Railroad  to  St.  Paul,  Minneapolis,  or  Duluth,  Minn.,  by 
paying  the  agent  of  the  Pacific  Coast  Steamship  Comp'any 
214  Montgomery  Street,  San  Francisco,  $15  for  ticket,  Saii 
Francisco  to  Portland,  provided  they  hold  an  excursion 
ticket  the  return  portion  of  which  reads  via  the  Northern 
Pacific  Railroad.  Should  the  return  portion  of  the  ticket 
read  over  one  of  the  Southern  lines,  it  will  be  exchanged  on 
payment  of  %xo  to  return  via  the  Northern  Pacific  on  appli- 
cation  to  T.  H.  Goodman,  General  Passenger  Agent  of  the 
Southern  and  Central  Pacific  Railroads,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
The  same  rule  applies  for  excursionists  reaching  Portland 
via  the  Northern  Pacific  who  may  desire  to  return  via  San 
Francisco.  The  latter  should  apply  to  John  J.  Byrne  Gen- 
eral Passenger  Agent  O.  R.  &  N.  Co.,  Ash  street 'dock, 
Portland,  Oregon,  for  exchange  of  railroad  ticket  or  special 
excursion  ticket,  Portland  to  San  Francisco. 

Words  of  praise  in  commendation  of  the  elegant  steamers 
run  by  the  Pacific  Coast  Steamship  Company  between  Port- 
land and  San  Francisco  are  unnecessary,  as  their  excellence 
IS  well  known  and  appreciated  by  the  traveling  public. 

The  rate  of  $15  referred  to  above  includes  stateroom  and 
meals  en  route.  Steamers  leave  Portland  and  San  Francisco 
every  five  days. 


l» 


I 


STEAMER  DAYS. 

The  demands  of  business  have  induced  the  Pacific  Coast 
Steamship  Company  to  double  their  service  to  Alaska,  and 
steamers  now  run  twice  a  month  instead  of  monthly,  as 
heretofore.  The  sagacity  of  this  movement  is  indicated  by 
the  fact  that  the  summer  excursion  lists  are  rapidly  filling 
months  in  advance  of  the  days  of  sailing.  Dates  of  depart- 
ure are  herewith  appended  : — 

Steamer.  Leaving  Portland. 

Mexico        May  28    June  25     July  23 
'•    14        "II         "9 
Leave  Port  Townsend. 
May  3-31  June  28    July  26    Aug.  23     Sept  20 
"        17       "    14      "     12       "9        "6 
If  larger  steamers  are  at  any  time  required  by  the  exigen- 


Idaho 

Mexico 
Idaho 


Aug.  20  Sept.  17 
"6    -   3 


;»&>■ 


APPENDIX. 


209 


cies  of  trade  they  will  at  once  be  substituted,  though  the 
ern  pi'fi'  f  ^f  ^V^^Pfcially)  are  fine  vessels.  '  The  Nortn- 
ern  Pacific  Railroad  Company  has  arranged  that  any  of  i?s 
agents  m  the  East  can  secure  accommodltions  for  Alaska 
excursionists  by  telegraphing  to  the  office  at  St.  Paul-  dia- 
grams, berth-hsts,  etc.,  furnished,  and  state  roomrsecured 


I 


